Youngkin’s plan to relocate the sports teams from Washington to Alexandria, Virginia, was deemed by state senator Louise Lucas to be “not ready for prime time.”
WASHINGTON The General Assembly of Virginia has encountered a roadblock in the plan to relocate the NHL’s Washington Capitals and the NBA’s Washington Wizards from Washington.
The plan put out by Republican Governor Glenn Youngkin to relocate the sports teams from Washington, D.C., to Alexandria, Virginia, was deemed by state senator Louise Lucas, the chair of the state Senate Finance and Appropriations Committee, to be “not ready for prime time.”
Lucas emphasized this point again on Monday, when her committee finished working on legislation that would go to their House of Delegates colleagues for approval, and which did not include the Senate measure outlining a $2 billion proposal to transfer the two teams.
Democrat Lucas stated on X, “This is what happens when Executive Branch doesn’t operate in good faith and doesn’t have respect for the Legislative Branch.”
The Wizards and the Capitals are owned by Monumental Sports & Entertainment, whose CEO, Ted Leonsis, announced in December that the two teams would play their home games in a multibillion dollar entertainment district.
Monumental also owns Washington’s Capital One Arena, home of the Wizards and Capitals. Both the Alexandria City Council and the Virginia Legislature must approve the plan.
One of Lucas’s worries is the project’s funding. A large portion of the project would be financed by bonds issued by the city of Alexandria and the Commonwealth of Virginia. In the event that the initiative is not as profitable as Youngkin and Leonsis anticipate, that may leave Virginia taxpayers footing the price.
When asked if the agreement was over, Lucas responded, “As far as I’m concerned,” to reporters in Richmond on Monday.
Monumental Sports officials and Youngkin remain optimistic. A bill that is currently making its way through the House of Delegates would create the “Virginia Stadium Authority,” which would be in charge of the Potomac Yard arena and entertainment complex in Alexandria, which is located in the suburbs of Washington, just south of Reagan National Airport. This week, the plan was decisively approved by the committee and will soon be put to a full vote in the House of Delegates.
Rob Damschen, the director of communications for Youngkin, stated in a statement, “The Governor is confident that the General Assembly will come together because this project is good for the entire Commonwealth.” “It generates billions of additional cash and 30,000 jobs, which may be utilized to support increased funding for I-81, expanded toll relief in Portsmouth, and additional funding for education for both rural and urban school divisions throughout the Commonwealth.”
Deal-making is nothing new for Youngkin, the former CEO of the equity company Carlyle Group, but the plan is the most recent illustration of the reality he must deal with as a Democrat controlling both houses of the General Assembly.
However, Youngkin does not lose his authority to send measures to the General Assembly while serving as governor; the session ends in mid-March.
Monumental Sports’ president of external affairs and chief administrative officer, Monica Dixon, is optimistic that the Potomac Yards proposal will move forward.
We’ve had constructive conversations with members of the General Assembly and Council in Alexandria, and we’re excited to collaborate with Richmond’s legislators to give them all the information they require to feel at ease about