The Washington, D.C. city council has voted 6-4 to approve public funding for a stadium to house the Washington Nationals once they transfer from Montreal and finish with their time in RFK Memorial Stadium.

Sayeth the Washington Post: "At the end of a seven-hour meeting, with [Mayor Anthony] Williams (D) watching in the packed hearing room, the council voted 6 to 4 to build the stadium along the Anacostia River near the Navy Yard and South Capitol Street. Three members, including Chairman Linda W. Cropp (D), abstained."

I'm told by a friend of mine who lives up that way that the area where this stadium would be built is essentially a slum, and that it'll be dangerous to go to games there. That would be unfortunate; one would think that if the Anacostia Yard is still open---apparently it is---the Navy presence would help keep the area from being too dangerous, but of course it's up to the individual ticket buyers.

If Mayor Williams wants people to come to the Nationals' new park---sure to be named something stupid like Prilosec Field---then perhaps he ought to make sure that the D.C. police have a strong presence in the area before, during, and after construction. This would of course entail arresting malingerers and other near-criminal types, so maybe that's asking too much.

At any rate, the Post article indicates that there's a fight going on over the whole thing in the D.C. council, and that is, as usual, to be expected. At any rate, congratulations to the franchise.

Posted by: Country Pundit at 04:36 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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