Written by DCist contributor Jesse Kaye

T-21 days.

The countdown is on for what may determine the fate of a large part of Southeast D.C. October 19 is the date set by the Deputy Mayor for Planning & Economic Development when all RFEI’s, or requests for expressions of interest, are due — and the date by which we ought to finally have an idea of what will happen to Poplar Point.

A year ago, the Bush administration and the National Park Service requested to turn over ownership and control of what everyone knew was going to be one of the largest PUD (planned use developments) projects this city has ever seen. Just across the river from the new Nationals Stadium now sits Poplar Point, a 130-acre site offered for development by the D.C. Government. It was originally going to be the new DC United stadium site, however after the fallout of negotiations between Victor MacFarlane, owner of DC United, and Mayor Fenty, an RFEI (request for expressions of interest) was released internationally for any investor/developer who could invest $200 million into the proposed project. Macfarlane’s cap was $150 million.

All documented interests must be presented to the city no later than October 19, 2007 for review and discussion. What makes this situation difficult is that Ward 8 Council member Marion Barry has publicly shunned Fenty’s outcome with MacFarlane and refuses to acknowledge any other proposals, which could cause quite an uproar as we approach the deadline.

The original idea was to have DC United move to their new stadium just 4 years after the Nationals moved into their stadium, which would allow the Redskins to eventually rebuild at the RFK, allowing for all four of D.C.’s teams to play within their home city. However, with Fenty’s recent move to offer Poplar Point publicly, the Redskins might just be staying put for a long time.