Congress’s last-minute spending appropriations saga had one more unexpected twist, with the Senate approving legislation to transfer administrative control of the Robert F. Kennedy Stadium campus to the District of Columbia. The move now puts the waterfront property in play as a potential future home for the Washington Commanders National Football League team.
Passed by unanimous consent in the waning hours of the 118th Congress on December 21, the Senate measure essentially restored a provision of the original stopgap spending bill that had been removed amid misinformation amplified by President-elect Trump’s confidant Elon Musk that it also authorized federal funds to develop a new stadium the on the site. Although that provision expressly forbid any use of federal dollars for such a project and any associated team facilities, negotiators in the House nevertheless dropped it in order to forge a viable compromise continuing resolution, averting a partial federal government shutdown by a matter of hours.
The Senate resolution on the RFK site, enacted following the chamber’s endorsement of the continuing resolution, mirrors legislation previously passed by the House, giving the District control of the 174-acre site alongside the Anacostia River for 99 years. President Biden is expected to sign the measure, which allows for mixed-use development, including commercial, residential and a stadium.
District-owned 47,000-seat RFK Stadium, the principal feature of the waterfront site, was the football team’s home from 1961 until 1996, when then-owner Jack Kent Cook built a mammoth new facility, now called Northwest Stadium, in suburban Landover, Md. With use of aging RFK Stadium falling off in step with its deteriorating condition in recent years, local leaders floated numerous recreational reuse concepts for the site, all of which required National Park Service approval. Earlier this year, the agency gave the nod for the District to begin full demolition of the facility.
With the Commanders now considering a replacement for Northwest Stadium, District officials hope that they now can offer an attractive site with fewer obstacles to privately financed development.
“As a city, we have worked for years toward the opportunity to transform a vacant, blighted sea of asphalt in the heart of D.C. and to put the RFK campus back to productive use,” said Washington, D.C., Mayor Muriel Bowser, who has long sought the team’s return to the District.
Though non-committal on the team’s relocation plans, managing partner Josh Harris said in a statement that the bill transferring control to the District creates “an equal playing field so that all potential future locations for the home of the Washington Commanders can be fairly considered and give our franchise the opportunity to provide the best experience for all of our fans.”
Harris has previously said that the team wants to leave Northwest Stadium within three years after its current lease there expires, in 2027. Long criticized its lack of convenient access to the Washington, DC-area Metrorail system, the facility has experienced a number of infrastructure issues in recent years, including leaking water pipes in the seating area and irrigation system failures.
Although the Commanders have not ruled out building a new stadium adjacent to its current home, the team has promised to redevelop the 200-acre Landover site at its own expense should a move take place. A memorandum of understanding recently signed by Commanders officials and Gov. Wes Moore (D) calls for the team to demolish and clear the existing stadium within 90 days of the first NFL game at a new permanent home. The Commanders are also required to collaborate with state, local and other agencies to “transform the Stadium Site into a vibrant mixed-use development.”
