I'm going to order this hearing.

This is a public hearing of the Committee of the Whole of the Council of the District of Columbia.

I'm Phil Mendelssohn, Chair of the Council and Chair of the Committee as a whole.

Today is Friday, October 23rd, 2026.

The time is 1026 in the morning.

The subject of this hearing is Bill 26-769, which is entitled The Soccer Stadium Redevelopment Amendment Act of 2026.

This bill was introduced by me on July 13th of this year.

And I'm going to try to read this even though I don't have my glasses.

The stated purpose of Bill 26-769 is to authorize the mayor to enter into a public-private, a public-private financing agreement with DC United or its affiliates to redevelop the soccer stadium known as Audi Field through the installation of a climate-controlling roof and the addition of more stadium seating.

The envisioned public-private financing model will include contributions from DC United and the district.

DC United predicts that the roof and additional seats will generate excess revenue in the district, which will more than offset the district's contribution to the project.

The bill also establishes the soccer stadium preservation and improvement fund to provide for the maintenance, repair, and capital improvements of the stadium site.

I

could read this a little better.

And provides tax exemptions on excess site revenue.

The legislation also commits DC United and its affiliates to creating an ancillary housing development that would include affordable housing units.

The record in this matter will be open for two weeks.

That is, it will close at 5 p.m.

on Friday, November 6, 2026.

And what does that mean?

As a political body, we accept comments right up to final reading on a bill.

But for hearings, we have to file record, and what we follow in the record is what we receive within the next today and within the next two weeks.

So that's what the Friday, November 6th deadline is about.

The uh legislation is somewhat similar to legislation that the council adopted a couple years ago with regard to the National's ballpark.

And the process is similar, and that is that we have legislation which sets up a framework for the district to be able to contribute.

The idea or the intent is that the district's financial contribution will be more than offset by revenues that are produced that are increased from the improvements to the stadium, uh, and that the funding for this would have to be considered at a subsequent budget to be considered by the council.

And what do I mean subsequent budget?

So the next time we have a budget is next March or April, depending upon what that budget looks like.

Uh, there would be funding that the council would put in or approve with regard to this legislation.

So this is two steps.

Uh, this legislation is the first.

Um there are several colleagues who are here.

Uh I'm hoping to recognize them and if they have opening statements in the order that they arrived.

Councilmember Pinto.

Great.

Well, good morning, everybody, and thank you so much, Mr.

Chairman, for holding this hearing today and for the many public witnesses who are participating, I think, as a testament to the huge interest and opportunity that this project can create for the district to really support new economic activity and revenue as we grow our sports capital and invest in what could be a true public-private partnership to accomplish so many of our goals in pursuit of public interest.

I want to recognize our economic outlook as a city and the opportunity that we have in this moment to provide more opportunities for our residents through housing, through sports, and through job opportunities.

We have to be laser-focused on creating these new economic opportunities.

And I think investing in the experience economy is a huge way to do so.

To build more housing, particularly for our seniors, and this deal could present an opportunity to do all of that as we also invest in women's sports.

I want Washington, D.C.

to be the best place for women's sports in the nation.

I'm excited about the chance to enable a year-round activation for Buzzard Point and all the positive impacts that it can have on surrounding businesses and restaurants who will also see more visitors from around the district and around the region.

This deal could position DC as a national leader in elevating women's sports and sports in general by requiring that the stadium host additional sporting events annually and investing in facilities to ensure that Washington Spirit has the deal that they deserve.

This deal also positions the district to welcome a new pro women's volleyball team and hopefully attract a major headquarters for women's volleyball.

We also must continue to think creatively about how to build more housing amid the crisis that we're experiencing, especially in construction, and to continue providing job opportunities for our residents, including our residents who have a record and who have are coming out of jail.

I think we need to all ensure that we're investing in economic opportunity and development to accommodate our needs for today, but also our needs over the next several decades.

And so I look forward to speaking with the witnesses today, working with my colleagues to ensure that any deal we move forward gets those pieces right to invest in housing, to invest in men's and women's sports, and to support these job opportunities.

Thank you, Mr.

Chairman.

Thank you, Councilmember Pinto.

Councilmember Allen.

Thank you, Mr.

Chairman.

I want to start off by saying I'm a bit of two minds about this proposal.

I think we do need to be open-minded about what an investment like this could produce, but then also be cautious about committing district taxpayer dollars to the renovation of Audi Field.

I'm concerned about some of the details in the introduced version of this bill, which I'm going to highlight in just a

moment.

On one hand, when I view this proposal as a district resident and taxpayer, I'll feel a little uneasy, especially since this is coming on the heels of the RFK campus redevelopment.