The Prince William Board of Supervisors is set to hear a proposal for a new $31-million Potomac Nationals ballpark at their next scheduled meeting on March 7, with the team set to present a revised letter of intent.
The latest proposal has Prince William County floating approximately $30 million in industrial authority bonds to finance construction of a new 4,600-seat ballpark on a seven-acre site at Stonebridge at Potomac Town Center, potentially opening in 2019. We still need to see the specifics, but the outlines of the deal are now public. From the Prince William Times:
JBG Companies would retain ownership of the land and charge the county a rental fee of $450,000 a year to lease it. The rent would ratchet up 10 percent every five years under a proposed 30-year lease.
In return, JBG would agree to fund about $10 million of the estimated $15 million it will cost to prepare the site the new stadium. The company would also pay for road improvements needed inside the shopping center and contribute about $250,000 for improvements to state-owned roads leading to the stadium, Principi said.
The Potomac Nationals, meanwhile, would agree to pay the county both the $450,000 in annual rent for the stadium land and about $2.5 million to cover the annual debt service cost on the bonds, Principi said.
Also included in the discussions: a $22-million, 1,400-space parking garage.
The meeting will be the first time the county sees the letter of intent, and final approval will come several months down the line, so citizens will have plenty of chances to weigh in. Some already have, wondering what would happen should the ballpark not be a financial success. Given that there’s little chance the team will leave — MiLB is a stickler for teams playing out their leases, so any good negotiator will craft a lease without an out clause — these concerns may be overwrought.
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