D.C. officials unveiled a portion of a long-awaited “sports study” on Thursday, offering a financial analysis of the city’s major sports teams, including the potential economic impact of a new NFL stadium.
The report paints a positive picture of how the city’s sports teams have benefited surrounding communities and estimates that a new mixed-use development anchored by an NFL stadium could result in 2,095 annual new jobs and $1.26 billion in yearly economic output — a measurement of goods and services produced.
“Hosting an NFL franchise is a once in a generation placemaking opportunity,” the report said.
But some economists and at least one elected official who reviewed the report were skeptical of some of its findings.
The move comes as the administration of Mayor Muriel E. Bowser (D) continues its bid to lure the Washington Commanders from their home in Landover, Md.
The $394,000 “sports study” was announced by Bowser a year ago as city lawmakers debated the merits of an NFL stadium and fielded requests for arena upgrades and improvements from some of the city’s sports franchises, including the Washington Nationals and the Monumental Sports & Entertainment-owned Wizards and Capitals.
Jones Lang LaSalle Americas Inc. (JLL) and the Robert Bobb Group were asked two produce two reports, including the economic impact study published Thursday.
But a second report examining ideas for how to finance a new stadium or rehabilitating the current one wasn’t published Thursday.
A spokesperson for the Office of the Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development, which oversaw the study, said in a statement that it had no plans to release that analysis.
As D.C. has competed for the Commanders with Maryland and Virginia, Bowser has made it clear that her ideal vision for the federally controlled RFK redevelopment includes a mixed-use development with housing, retail, and sports recreation.
Over the years local governments, sports team owners, and other interested parties have sought to convince the public that stadiums are a good investment with studies that promise great economic benefits, Michael Leeds, an economics professor at Temple University, said in an interview last year.
Asked whether the campus is truly suitable for a stadium, Bowser said the plan is to “deliver a truly iconic experience.”
