Council members ask for more study of $300 million in city money for Audi Field roof

By Marcus Tillery

WASHINGTON — D.C. Council members said Friday they need more information before they can back a $620 million plan to put a roof over Audi Field and expand the Buzzard Point stadium, and the bill’s sponsor closed the hearing by asking D.C. United and the Bowser administration to work through their differences.

The Committee of the Whole took testimony on Bill 26-769, the Soccer Stadium Redevelopment and Maintenance Act of 2026, which Council Chairman Phil Mendelson introduced in July. The bill would let the mayor enter a public-private financing agreement under which the District would contribute $300 million and D.C. United and its affiliates $320 million toward a climate-controlled roof, more seating, a stadium maintenance fund and an affordable housing project nearby, FOX 5 DC reported. More than 50 people testified.

The Inquisitor previewed the hearing Friday morning. No vote is scheduled. If the bill moves, a vote would likely not come until the next Council period, next year, WTOP reported.

The team’s case

D.C. United says Major League Soccer’s planned move to a summer-to-spring calendar, which will put games in the winter months starting with the 2027-28 season, makes a roof close to a necessity. “The building can actually just, like, freeze,” Danita Johnson, the club’s president of business operations, told the committee, explaining that concession stands and restrooms cannot run at full service in cold months, DC News Now reported.

The club says the expansion would take the stadium to about 30,000 seats, add space for the Washington Spirit, and bring in 64 additional events a year, according to a study the team commissioned, Axios reported. “The roof opens the door to much more,” chief executive Jason Levien said.

“We’re very aware of the struggles from a financial standpoint for the city, but we do believe the long term of this can continue to put dollars back into the city,” Johnson said. Mendelson said the intent is that the District’s contribution will be “more than offset by revenues that are produced” by the improvements, according to WTOP.

The skeptics

Council member Elissa Silverman (At-Large) cited the District’s projected budget shortfall of more than $600 million and asked why residents should pay nearly half the cost “when we are struggling to pay for schools, housing, things that impact their lives very directly.” “It sounds like we need to do a lot more studying,” she said.

Ward 6 Council member Charles Allen, whose ward includes the stadium, said a better fan experience is “perfectly reasonable” but added, “it does seem like a lot of taxpayer money for what we may be getting.” He also asked whether the club had studied the risk of “cannibalizing” events from Nationals Park, Capital One Arena and the planned Commanders stadium. Johnson said the team had held talks with other venues, including Monumental Sports & Entertainment, about a possible memorandum of understanding so the venues do not compete for the same events.

The administration, which Axios said is calling for more economic modeling, also pushed back. “How did the number $300 million come about?” asked Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development Nina Albert. The Washington Business Journal has reported that Mayor Muriel Bowser opposes the Audi Field subsidy, according to FOX 5.

Shira Markoff, director of economic policy at the D.C. Fiscal Policy Institute, said, “D.C. may be dubbed the sports capital, but it could be called the sports-subsidy capital,” and argued that research shows renovations rarely produce enough new spending to justify public money.

Neighbors raised traffic. Buzzard Point is a peninsula reached during events by “one road in, 2nd Street, Southwest, and one road out, Half Street, Southwest,” said Anna Forgie, a Spirit season-ticket holder. Johnson, who said she also lives in Southwest, said the club has discussed added bus lanes.

What’s next

The hearing ended with Mendelson and other members asking for more information and for changes to the bill, according to WTOP. Mendelson adjourned by suggesting that Levien and Albert find time to discuss their differences, including any further studies, Axios reported. Bill text and the hearing record are on the Council’s legislation page.

The Inquisitor contacted D.C. United, Mendelson’s office, Allen’s office, Silverman’s office, the Office of the Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development and the D.C. Fiscal Policy Institute on Saturday for comment on the next steps. This story will be updated with any responses.

Photo: Audi Field in Washington. Tony Webster / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0.