Majority Oppose Capitals, Wizards Arena In Alexandria: Patch Survey

ALEXANDRIA, VA — After a proposal to relocate the Washington Capitals and Wizards to Alexandria's Potomac Yard was released Wednesday, a Northern Virginia Patch survey found many respondents opposed to the arena proposal.

The $2 billion entertainment district project, announced by the teams' owner Monumental Sports & Entertainment, Gov. Glenn Youngkin, developer JBG Smith and City of Alexandria officials, would move the Washington Capitals and Wizards arena from D.C.'s Chinatown to Alexandria's Potomac Yard.

The proposal also includes corporate headquarters for Monumental Sports & Entertainment, a Monumental Sports Network media studio, Wizards practice facility, performing arts venue and expanded e-sports facility. JBG Smith's mixed-use development is already planned to have new retail, residential, restaurants, hotels, conference and community gathering space uses.

Our survey from the morning of Thursday, Dec. 14, to noon on Monday, Dec. 18, drew more than 1,500 responses. Respondents ranged from Fredericksburg to Leesburg in Northern Virginia and Montgomery County to St. Mary's County in Maryland. A significant share of respondents indicated they were from Alexandria, where the arena is proposed.

In the survey, 63.1 percent said they did not support the proposed relocation of the Washington Capitals and Wizards arena to Alexandria. There were 32 percent who were supportive, and the remaining 4.9 percent were unsure.

• SEE ALSO: Washington Capitals, Wizards Move From DC To NoVA Outlined

We also asked readers which locations they would consider traveling to for a Capitals or Wizards game — multiple locations could be chosen. Sixty-five percent indicated they would travel to Capital One Arena, while 40.1 percent said they would travel to Potomac Yard in Alexandria. There were 6.9 percent who would theoretically consider traveling to a location in the Maryland suburbs of DC. Another 14.7 percent indicated they would not travel to any of the location for a game.

Respondents who were supportive of the arena cited reasons like safety, convenience and economic benefits like revenue and jobs. Here are some of the comments from readers in favor of the arena:

• It will be fun to have the teams here AND it will be good to have a large venue for concerts, etc. Plus we’ve had no place for our Alexandria City Public School graduation. We’ve had to rent a place outside the city. The possibilities are endless. This will be good for Alexandria! - Alexandria reader
• Good for Virginia and too much crime in DC. - Ashburn reader
• Closer to home - Fredericksburg reader
• I can walk to Caps games!! - Del Ray reader
• It would be great to have it closer and still on the Metro line. - Falls Church reader
• Maybe I can actually go to a Caps game without having to travel into DC. Very inconvenient for me. - Woodbridge reader
• More jobs! More customers for local businesses! - Alexandria reader
• The Chinatown area is very dangerous now, and Alexandria is closer to me! - Centreville reader
• Better this than more unaffordable housing density - Alexandria reader
• Proposed site is tailor made for this type of development. Unlike a hulking mostly empty stadium, the arena and entertainment venues will boost development and contribute to positive growth in Alexandria and the region. -Alexandria reader
• Hate to go into DC anymore with traffic/crime, etc. A move to Alexandria would make it much more convenient for many NOVA fans and for the “mites on ice” teams that are bringing kids in to play before the game. I think it would be more family friendly in general. - Dumfries reader
• Increase to real estate values, access to entertainment, but I do worry about the increased traffic congestion. -Del Ray reader
• I'd be receptive to going to more events if I didn't need to go into DC to the existing Capital One center. -Leesburg reader
• More interesting than office buildings -- offers more for me and my family to interact with. -Del Ray reader
• I enjoy living in an urban environment, i would love for a concert / sports venue to be closer to my home. It will get more populated, more jobs, that is true, our home price might rise, streets and schools will need to be improved, more numerous to accommodate for the changes. I see it a progress and inevitable. -Del Ray reader
• The whole development will bring much needed commercial tax revenue to Alexandria and will expand entertainment options - not just sport but performing arts - in our city, which right now are lacking. -Alexandria reader
• D.C. has allowed Chinatown/Gallery Place neighborhood to become unacceptably unsafe. Potomac Yards has good transportation access, and new stadium will spur growth, as Nats Park has. -McLean reader
• Tired of driving to MD and DC for ALL SPORTS ENTERTAINMENT. -Manassas reader
• The current shopping center has a massive parking lot that could better used. Essentially only the Target is worthwhile. The design is extremely out-dated compared to a modern approach of mixed retail and housing. This project would bring a ton of new jobs, sports teams within reach, concerts, and overall help boost the local economy. -Alexandria reader
• I love the idea of having a stadium in our town! It would improve business and help the community grow. I hope the traffic won’t be an issue though, so I’m hoping there will be new roads and that the city, and the builder, will give this issue a priority. I also hope that there’ll be enough parking so people going to the stadium won't park in the residential areas. -Alexandria reader

Opposed residents cited reasons like taxpayer support for the project, concerns about traffic and parking, a desire to keep the teams in DC and revitalize Gallery Place/Chinatown, and the inconvenience of the location. Here are some of the comments from readers opposed to the arena:

• Traffic, crime, concern about our shopping center, overdevelopment, environmental pollution, impact on taxpayers, impact on adjacent neighborhoods, lack of transparency in all levels of government. -Del Ray reader
• Teams should stay in D.C. Constant new development is bad for the environment, especially with all the greenhouse gas emissions from the construction. The Caps and Wizards already have a nice arena in D.C. that simply needs to be upgraded on an as-needed basis. Also, Virginia does not need to be subsidizing billionaires. -Arlington reader
• Illegal parking on blocks in Del Ray, traffic, lack of infrastructure, small metro stop, commute impacts, and taking away opportunities to build more mixed-use housing in Potomac Yard. -Del Ray reader
• These teams belong in the district at Gallery place, which is metro hub for all lines. -Alexandria reader
• The proposed area cannot support the influx of people that will cause - Richmond Highway, the metro, none of it. Getting to/from DCA or anything around there will be a nightmare on game days. Additionally, it would be a huge blow to downtown DC. -Washington, DC reader
• 1 - There's something special about going into DC to watch a sports event. 2 - DC is centrally located so fans in VA & MD can easily get to the arena. 3 - Traffic is already horrible in that area and most fans would probably drive to games, making traffic even worse. -Alexandria reader
• We don't have the road infrastructure to support it, and there's been no plan put forth to address this issue. Plus, Potomac Yards has a lot of new development from Amazon to the new university location, in addition to shopping. Shouldn't we see the impact of that first for a few more years. Finally, why are we trying to take such a key entertainment draw from our nation's capitol? Sure they have crime issues that need addressing, but this would really hurt DC, and we need to respect that again, it's our nation capitol! We shouldn't be trying to hurt a neighboring area, especially when they're going through a hard time from covid recovery, etc. Have some respect! -Alexandria reader
• Residents of Alexandria first heard of this when it was announced by the Governor…where is community involvement in the process. Our roads are already crowded and crime is rising. -Alexandria reader
• Reducing the quality of life for the residents of our neighbor, Washington, D.C, is a bad idea and more important than the claimed economic benefits for Virginia that will come at DC's expense. -Arlington reader
• Traffic on route 1; Del Ray will lose it's small town appeal; cost of living will surely increase even more; DC teams should play in DC. Chinatown will revert back to a wasteland now. -Alexandria reader
• I don't want to spend over an hour to reach the proposed location. -Kensington, Maryland reader
• Think the current more central location in DC is a better and more customer convenient location for these two major DMV sports teams and that it would be a waste of government resources to build an expensive new facility and associated infrastructure when there is a currently existing facility in a good location which can be renovated if necessary. -McLean reader
• Cost increases! I'm a small business owner, and Alexandria has already become very hard for small businesses like mine to operate. Not small business friendly anymore many would say....-Alexandria reader
• The current location at Metro Center is perfect for fans from DC, MD and VA. It would take me longer to get to Potomac Yards than it does Metro Center. Plus I feel bad for residents of Alexandria/Del Ray who would have to deal with all that traffic. -Arlington reader
• I am concerned about traffic implications (including impact to DCA access during events), overall congestion implications for the area, potential crime increase, and what will happen in the future when the stadium is considered obsolete. -Reston reader
• Alexandria’s roads cannot support the traffic a stadium would bring. We strongly opposed a football stadium in the 1990’s for this reason and traffic has only gotten worse. The proposal is for 220 events a year, meaning most of the year traffic will be a disaster for the locals. I am also upset with local officials who did not survey residents on this sooner. The only data available is from the early 1990’s when citizens said no to a stadium. Finally, DC desperately needs the business Cap One Arena brings in. -Alexandria reader
• Washington teams belong in Washington. Keep Virginia beautiful by not constantly using up land building monstrous buildings and arenas. -Centreville reader
• Location is not convenient for the majority of fans. -Frederick, Maryland reader
• Cap one central to all dmv. Potomac yards would turn into a traffic nightmare. -Waldorf, Maryland reader
• Metro can't handle it. Too much traffic. Too far for Maryland. Will harm DC. Alexandria needs more housing not an arena. -Springfield reader

What's Next For The Arena Proposal

If the project is approved, Monumental Sports & Entertainment said the Capitals and Wizards would continue playing at Capital One Arena through 2027. Construction on the new project could begin in 2025 with an expected opening in 2028.

The proposal requires approval from the Virginia General Assembly in the 2024 session for a Virginia Sports and Entertainment Authority. The City of Alexandria would also need to approve the project. However, it will not move forward if D.C. successfully negotiates to keep the Capitals and Wizards at Capital One Arena. D.C. leaders have offered $500 million to upgrade the existing Capital One Arena and extension of the ground lease to 2052, the Washington Post reported.

In 2024, project partners are expected to seek land use proposals from the Alexandria Planning Commission and City Council, including master plan amendments to the North Potomac Yard Small Area Plan, coordinated development district amendments and development special use permits. City Council will need to approve a master agreement, land transactions, Virginia Sports and Entertainment Authority's lease of land for the performance venue, arena campus design and construction agreement, revenue contribution and cooperation agreement, development agreement for construction of the first phase, and community benefits agreement.