House advances RFK Stadium site bill

WASHINGTON - Lawmakers are breathing new life into legislation that would give Washington, D.C. control of the old RFK Stadium site. 

FOX 5’s Melanie Alnwick reports that the Washington Commanders ownership group has been keeping all options on the table in the District, Maryland, and Virginia.

But this would be a big incentive to bring the team back to the place where it all started. 

The glory days of RFK Stadium are gone. Peeling paint and rust stains circle what used to be a memorial stadium. 

D.C. United was the last team to play here in the 2017 season. The seats were removed and sold in 2022. Interior demolition has been completed. 

The federal government owns the land, and city leaders have asked for more control of the site. 

There have been proposals to redevelop the land into a multi-use sport and entertainment complex which could be used to eventually lure the Commanders back to Washington. 

Bill H. R. 4984, known as the D.C. Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium Campus Revitalization Act, would give the District of Columbia a 99-year lease on the land. 

D.C. Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton says the language has flexibility, allowing the land to be used for a stadium, parks, commercial or residential purposes. 

If passed, the bill takes effect in 180 days. But there is still a lot to do, and D.C. Council Chair Phil Mendelson has said the money for any development here would have to come from private companies, not the D.C. budget.