It’s official: there will be no new $2 billion stadium complex in Alexandria’s Potomac Yard, and the Washington Capitals and Wizards are staying in DC. Ted Leonsis, the owner of the teams, and DC Mayor Muriel Bowser announced the news at a press conference Wednesday. Here’s who came out ahead—and who, much like the 2023-24 Wizards—took a loss.
The Winners
Ted Leonsis
Sure, he didn’t get the multi-billion-dollar stadium/entertainment district extravaganza in Potomac Yard that he’d hoped for. But he did get $15 million more than the $500 million DC originally offered him—along with a laundry list of other goodies—just to stay in Chinatown at a spruced-up Capital One Arena.
Muriel Bowser
You could argue that her administration’s slowness to respond to Leonsis’ initial $600 million ask led him to seek a much bigger handout in Virginia, and that the eventual deal to have the teams remain in DC was, uh, extremely generous given that Monumental had little leverage after the Potomac Yards plan went kaput. And you wouldn’t be wrong! That said, Bowser wanted the Caps and Wiz downtown; kept working the problem even after Leonsis declared that “the die is cast”; deployed a politically-savvy carrot (our offer remains on the table!) and stick (leave and the city will sue!) approach; and ultimately avoided going down in history as the mayor who let two of city’s major sports franchises skip town. That’s a W.
DC and Maryland fans
Was anyone north of the Potomac really looking forward to an hour-long drive—or Metro ride—to see Jordan Poole and Kyle Kuzma hoist jumpers? With the teams remaining downtown, playing within walking distance of a stop for all six of Metro’s lines, that journey might be easier to stomach.
Alexandria NIMBYs
Rejoice! You get to keep your Target!
Gallery Place Businesses
While the McDonald’s may be lost to the sands of time, the faithful patrons of Rocket Bar, Clyde’s, and Chinatown Express—among other local watering holes and restaurants—can breathe a bit easier knowing that the neighborhood’s main tenant won’t cut and run before 2050. No word yet on Daikaya, whose streetery might get torn out as part of Leonsis’s wish list; in a statement to Washingtonian, the restaurant’s ownership group said they were excited the teams were staying downtown, but “have not been made aware of any stipulation related to this in an official capacity.”
Monumental Sports Employees
It’s hard getting a parking spot downtown. Fortunately for Monumental Sports employees, the pending deal with the city—which still needs final DC Council approval—will allow more of them to park at District-owned buildings.
National Airport Passengers
Having one of the region’s main airports less than two miles away from the site of some 80 NBA and NHL games every year probably wouldn’t have made for an ideal traffic situation on Route 1.
L. Louise Lucas
Virginia’s senate finance committee chair has served in the chamber for more than 30 years. But it wasn’t until the Potomac Yard deal—or the “Glenn Dome,” as she calls it—came on her docket that the Portsmouth legislator became a household name in the DMV. She’s also pretty good at Twitter.
The Losers
Ted Leonsis
Prior to his Potomac Yard misadventure, Leonsis had a pretty good local rep—but that only made his eagerness to bail on the city sting even more. For some fans, he’s now lived long enough to become the villain—but on the flip side, he has 25 years to make a face turn. (Protip: Winning more games would help!)
DC Taxpayers
Yes, as the Washington Post reported, the $515 million for Capital One Arena upgrades is coming out of DC’s capital budget—and not its operating budget, where the city faces a shortfall that may require DCPS teacher layoffs. Still, that’s a lot of money going toward fixing a stadium that didn’t really need fixing, and that could’ve been spent on more pressing needs.
The Washington Commanders
Will there be enough money left to lure DC’s football team back home? It’s hard to say, but the Post reports that Leonsis is eyeing their old stomping grounds, the site of RFK Stadium, as the location of a promised new training facility for the Wizards. Josh Harris might have to get used to Landover.
Potomac Yard
WMATA’s newest Metro station will likely remain one of its least-used. But at least there’s the aforementioned Target.
JBG Smith
The Potomac Yard deal figured to greatly benefit local developing giant JBG Smith, which released an unusually terse statement Wednesday stating that “to say we are disappointed is an understatement; we are disgusted with the back-room-dealing and opaque scheming that took place as this played out.” The initial NoVa deal, of course, came together without any back-room-dealing whatsoever.
The Buskers
Leonsis reportedly is not a big fan of the oft-noisy Gallery Place street performers. Now, with the team(s) owner specifically highlighting his safety concerns about their H Street turf and a recent DC law giving police wide berth to order people to disperse in “drug free zones”—like the one around Capital One Arena—things could get a lot quieter.
Glenn Youngkin
With a year and a half to go before he’s term-limited out of office, the Virginia governor and long-rumored White House wannabe needed a signature accomplishment on his resume. Instead, he failed to count votes and got absolutely pantsed.
Editor’s note: Due to a monumental brain cramp, an earlier version of this article did not include Muriel Bowser.
