A rendering of the proposed arena where the Wizards and Capitals would play in Alexandria.

/ JBG SMITH for ILLUSTRATIVE purposes

The Virginia House of Delegates passed legislation Tuesday to move forward on a proposed arena in Alexandria. The bipartisan House vote means the bill now goes to the state Senate, where it’s expected to be considered before the legislative session ends in March.

Companion legislation in the Senate was blocked recently by the chair of the Finance Committee, Sen. Louise Lucas (D-Chesapeake/Portsmouth), suggesting some bargaining will need to happen before a deal gets done.

It was all supposed to be an easy win for Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin and other proponents.

It was back in mid-December when Younkin and a bipartisan group of Virginia politicians gathered to announce a deal, appearing alongside Monumental Sports & Entertainment owner Ted Leonsis. The proposal would move Monumental’s teams, the Washington Wizards and Capitals, from Capital One Arena in D.C. to a new arena in Alexandria.

While enthusiasm and excitement were the mood of the day in Alexandria, three and a half miles away in the District, D.C. officials refused to be counted out. Local leaders were understandably concerned the city was on the verge of losing an economic tentpole downtown.

Now, just two months later, the Virginia deal is facing hurdles in the General Assembly, D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser is threatening litigation, and Leonsis is on the defensive.

Virginia deal not dead

While the Virginia House of Delegates did pass legislation on Tuesday, there are skeptics in the state senate who are signaling they want to negotiate before agreeing to any deal.

Lucas announced on social media over the weekend her committee would not consider a bill that would set up financing for the Alexandria arena (or, as she calls it, the “Glenn Dome”), saying it’s “not ready for prime time.”

She also made no secret that Youngkin’s partisan comments over the weekend attacking Democrats played a role in her decision.

Later, when asked Monday if the deal was dead, Lucas said “as far as I’m concerned, it is,” according to the Associated Press.

State Sen. Adam Ebbin (D-Alexandria), who represents the Potomac Yard neighborhood, tells DCist/WAMU the legislation will now be considered by the state Senate, having made it through today’s “crossover day,” the date by which legislation has to pass in one chamber in order to be taken up in the other.

“I do not consider this proposal to be dead. The House bill will be coming over,” he said. “And I do anticipate that there’ll be another consideration when the House bill comes over.”

Ebbin also cited a provision providing financing for the arena in Youngkin’s proposed budget bill from December.

That’s the more likely scenario for this deal to get done, according to Stephen Farnsworth, a professor of political science at the University of Mary Washington.

“I wouldn’t be surprised if there’s going to be a deal that it happens at the 11th hour in the budget bill, where Democrats get the things that they want in exchange for the governor getting what he wants,” Farnsworth says.

Farnsworth ticks off as bargaining chips more money for education, mental health, and long-term, dedicated funding for Metro.

Ebbin says Metro funding is on his list of must-haves for him to support any arena legislation, echoing what he’s heard from residents about traffic and transportation concerns.

It’s not something Youngkin has officially proposed yet, notably leaving it out of his December budget, but he’s hinted recently this could be back on the table, but he also insists Metro funding is separate from the arena deal.

“There is no reason for the Democratic majority in the legislature to, be restrained in their wish list,” Farnsworth says. “The governor wants the deal a lot more than they do, and that’s when you can get most of what you want in a negotiation.”

Youngkin also has the power to send a bill of his own to the legislature for consideration at any time during the session, which concludes on March 9.

D.C. threatens litigation

Leonsis made the circuit of local television news outlets last week, insisting he’s “not abandoning D.C.,” but “the die is cast” in terms of a move to Virginia.

D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser disagrees — she recently shifted from wooing Monumental to playing hardball. Bowser on Friday published an op-ed in the Washington Post with the headline “Why Washington’s sports teams should stay in Washington.”

The editorial warned Monumental that if it breaks its lease at Capital One Arena, there would be consequences.

“Our deal would mean Monumental can avoid any broken promises, breached leases or potential litigation to distract from building the most valuable regional sports company,” Bowser wrote.

In response to the doubts cast in Richmond and the mayor’s op-ed, Monumental called a last-minute press conference on Monday. Monica Dixon, chief administrative officer for the company, said ownership remains “100% focused on Virginia” and is confident a deal will move forward in some manner.

Bowser says in the op-ed that when the city gave the team’s ownership group an extra $50 million for arena upgrades in 2007, it was in exchange for adding 20 extra years to the lease. Meaning, the Wizards and Capitals are obligated to play at Capital One Arena until 2047. Moving the Wizards and Capitals to Virginia before then, so says the Mayor, would be breaking a signed lease.

Monumental disagrees, saying the original contract gives them the right to pay off bonds by 2027 and end the lease early.

“While I think there were some factual inaccuracies in the op-ed, I think it’s better that we just discussed them with her and her staff,” Dixon said.”We want to have a good relationship.”

All of this posturing seems to be setting the stage for the city and Monumental to potentially work together for at least a few more years.

Dixon also said Monday that ownership is looking to negotiate a one-year lease extension to allow the Wizards and Capitals to remain at Capital One Arena beyond 2027. “When the lease ends in 2027, we hand the keys over to the mayor,” she said. “What we would like to do is negotiate another year for the Caps and Wizards to play here at Cap One Arena while the [Alexandria] building is being completed.”

Dixon cited financial figures indicating it makes sense for the city to agree to this extension. But she also acknowledged the mayor and the D.C. Council may not agree.

“I hope that we won’t get to that place,” she said. “But, if we do, then the Caps and the Wizards would have to play in a different location.” 

DCist/WAMU reached out to both Bowser and D.C. Council Chair Phil Mendelson about a one-year extension of the lease.

A spokesperson for Bowser said the mayor is “assessing” this ask, while Mendelson said he’s yet to be approached and didn’t want to comment.

“[I] do not know [Monumental’s] thinking and therefore it’s hypothetical,” he said. Initially, as part of the plan to move the Wizards and Capitals, Monumental said the Washington Mystics would also move from the team’s relatively new complex in Congress Heights back to Capital One Arena, where the WNBA team played for two decades.

The mayor is pushing back on this as well, writing in the op-ed that the city intends “to keep our end of the bargain and enforce the leases with Monumental that require the Wizards and Capitals to play at the arena through 2047 and the Mystics to play in Congress Heights through 2037.” Because she links the two outcomes, it’s unclear if the mayor supports the Mystics moving if the Caps and Wizards decamp for Virginia.

Leonsis and Monumental appear to be shifting on the question of the Mystics, with Dixon saying that the Mystics would only move from their home in Southeast back to Capital One Arena if the mayor allows it to happen.

If the Mystics were to move back downtown, Dixon told DCist/WAMU that Monumental would not ask the city for any financial support to upgrade the arena. (Nor is it clear the city would offer Monumental anything in that case, since the $500 million is an incentive to keep the Caps and the Wizards.)

“If we are allowed to continue to operate the arena, we would not ask the city for any support,” Dixon said.”We had already budgeted to put about $200 million into the building, before the renovations. And we’d go ahead and do that over the next couple of years so that we could extend the life here for as long as whatever agreement takes place is in effect.”

It’s also not known at this time if Georgetown University will continue playing their men’s basketball games at the arena, with Dixon saying that decision is currently with the school.

At this moment, it remains unclear how all of this will play out.

With the Virginia General Assembly session ending in just over 30 days, the next several weeks are crucial in determining what both downtown D.C. and Potomac Yard will look like in the future.

“It seems like it’s hit a setback for now, but we don’t know yet if that’s a speed bump,” says Ebbin. “Or a roadblock.”

It remains likely the teams will move to a new arena in Alexandria sometime within the next five or six years. If that’s the case, Capital One Arena will have, at most, one professional sports franchise calling it home. And D.C. would need to continue exploring other ways to bring economic activity to the neighborhood surrounding the arena.

Filed Under: alexandria, district of columbia, Northern Virginia, regional politics,