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Fresh off a city hall announcement that the Washington Commanders and the D.C. Council chair have a new deal for a stadium at the RFK site, supporters of the stadium went door to door Thursday evening in Northeast D.C. encouraging residents to back the plan.
The supporters were asking people who live about a mile away from the proposed stadium site to put up yard signs indicating they back the plan.
As the stadium supporters walked through Northeast, knocking on doorbells as they carried yard signs and surrounded by reporters, they had their message thought out.
They said the proposed new stadium and residential and business development is a once-in-a-generation economic powerhouse.
Socrates Cala, co-chair of the pro-stadium group RFK Now, said going door to door is important because you’re able to help people with a simpler understanding of an issue.
“As you get folks that are doing what you do and live where you live to explain it to you, you understand it a lot better,” he said. “It’s not just about the Commanders. This is about the jobs that it’s going to create. This is about the excitement of the city. This is about the next level of economic development that this project is going to take the city to.”
Supporters of the stadium say the proposal got a big boost by Thursday’s announcement by D.C. Council Chairman Phil Mendelson after he and other members of the council worked with the Washington Commanders to revise Mayor Muriel Bowser’s original deal with the team. That deal promised $1 billion in funds from the District toward stadium infrastructure and parking garages.
“We feel we have a much-improved agreement that would bring the team back to their historical home, as well as develop the land around the RFK campus,” Mendelson said in a post on X.
Longtime Northeast resident James Gaston III said he was thrilled to put a sign in front of his home that his family has owned for 70 years.
“You need projects like this to take you over the hump and bring new revenue to the city, jobs and construction and things of that nature, and it’s the only way it’s going to happen,” he said. “Right now, it’s not generating any revenue for the city, and I believe this project will bring a lot of revenue to the city.”
Malcom Fox is with the group Opportunity D.C. He said residents near the stadium and citywide are beginning to understand the economic possibilities of the project.
“A lot of residents really support this deal, not just in polling, but on the ground and all the conversations we’re having with residents,” he said. “They really want this deal, not just because they’re big Commanders fans, but because they understand the economic benefits for the city.”
A public hearing on the stadium is scheduled for next week, and the first D.C. Council vote is planned for Aug. 1.
WTOP’s Mike Murillo contributed to this report.