WASHINGTON, DC—The Gray administration defended its proposed land swap that is critical to the construction of a new stadium for the D.C. United soccer team before the D.C. Council on Wednesday.
The D.C. Council reviewed an analysis of the project authored by CSL International, Integra Realty Resources and the Robert Bobb Group. The report raised several red flags, including that the city would be shorted more than $25.7 million in the land swaps and that cost overruns could occur that would raise the price tag for stadium that is currently estimated at $286.7 million, according to the Washington Post.
City Administrator Allen Lew says the benefits outweigh the risks. “If we compare the risks in this transaction to those present in the Nationals Ballpark or the Convention Center deals, both of which are viewed in hindsight as highly successful endeavors, the risk in this transaction is far less than the risk in those situations,” Lew says.
John P. Ross, the director of the city's office of the chief financial officer, testified that the Gray administration has not identified where it would get the money to fill financial gaps in the deal and that the CFO has determined that the estimated $50 million in tax breaks requested by the team weren't needed to finance construction of the stadium. See story in the Washington Post.
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