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Downtown businesses support $515M deal between Monumental Sports and DC
Businesses around Capital One Arena are breathing a sigh of relief after the announcement that the Washington Wizards and Capitals will stay in Washington D.C. FOX 5's Homa Bash spoke to business owners who are thrilled about the news.
WASHINGTON - Businesses around Capital One Arena are breathing a sigh of relief after the announcement that the Washington Wizards and Capitals will stay in Washington D.C.
Many of the businesses in and around Chinatown said they were still recovering from the pandemic when this bustling neighborhood turned into a ghost town.
Crime has been a concern FOX 5 DC has reported on in recent months, as well.
And the news that the anchor - Capital One Arena - might move to Northern Virginia would have been a massive blow.
Now, not only do D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser and Monumental CEO Ted Leonsis say they're staying – they say the plan is to make it all bigger and better.
Caps, Wizards not moving to Potomac Yard, staying in DC
The proposal to bring the Washington Wizards and Washington Capitals to Potomac Yard will not move forward, officials say.
Some of the upgrades with the $515 million investment from D.C. include adding 200,000 square feet, better seating and monitors, and the creation of an entertainment district.
Safety improvements involve adding 17 dedicated officers from two hours before game time to two hours after game time.
FOX 5 spoke with business owners like Jason He, who opened Bonkers' Chinese Burger last June, and Kareem Stewart, the general manager of the Penn Quarter Sports Tavern, which has been around for the last 20 years.
And everyone agrees, they're thrilled about the future.
"That's very good choice, very good decision. I think it's worth the money," He said. "I think it'll help the community and whole D.C. area."
"This is such a blessing to the area, to downtown, to Penn Quarter, to myself personally," Stewart said. "I've been a 20-plus year season ticket holder to the Wizards, so I'm super happy."
As the bar and restaurant tables in Penn Quarter Sports Tavern were packed Thursday afternoon, Stewart said right now, they're in the heart of the tourism season.
"But throughout the year, we rely so much on Capital One Arena - concerts, Caps games, Wizards games - you name it. It just brings so much foot traffic to the area. It sustains us yearly," Stewart added.
Capital One Arena in D.C.’s Gallery Place-Chinatown corridor
Gerren Price is the president of the Downtown D.C. Business Improvement District (BID).
He said the fear was real about businesses leaving if the arena moved out of D.C. and into Potomac Yard.
Now, there's a feeling of overwhelming happiness among business owners.
"I've already heard from many of them saying crisis averted - and are now looking at how do we stay, and we're encouraged that this is now cemented through 2050," Price said, adding that he's also already hearing from businesses looking to move into the area following Wednesday's announcement.
To note, even without the proposed improvements, it appears Capital One Arena is doing just fine, with Ted Leonsis tweeting earlier this week that the Zach Bryan concert Monday night was the highest-attended concert in arena history, with 20,280 people.