D.C. Council approves revised lease for ballpark

By MARTY NILAND, Associated Press Writer

February 8, 2006

 

WASHINGTON (AP) -- In a stunning reversal, the District of Columbia Council approved a revised lease for the Washington Nationals' new ballpark early Wednesday, just hours after rejecting an earlier version.

 

After initially voting down the lease 8-5 Tuesday night, council members returned to session an hour later at the urging of Mayor Anthony A. Williams. They attached legislation capping the city's total cost at just less than $611 million and voted 9-4 to approve. Bob DuPuy, Major League Baseball's No. 2 official, said he would withhold judgment until the sport had a chance later Wednesday to review the changes made by the council.

 

"We'll see what it looks like and how it impacts our contract with them, and we'll comment on it tomorrow," said DuPuy, baseball's chief operating officer. "I cannot comment until I see it and see what impact, if any, it has on the contract they approved a year ago December. They have amended it repeatedly tonight, so I am not really sure what it says."

 

Williams said he would convince baseball officials that the deal is sound.

 

"We'll get them on board," he said. "The council has made a statement. The council has put in a firm cap and now we're all going to work together to get baseball on board."

 

Council chair Linda W. Cropp said despite the argument of opponents that costs for the project would keep rising, the deal was good for the city.

 

"It's not the best deal," she said. "But it's a better deal."

 

As part of the agreement to lure the Montreal Expos following the 2004 season, Washington agreed to spend money on construction and land acquisition for the stadium, to be built along the Anacostia River waterfront. The council voted then to authorize up to $535 million in bonds, but the price of the project is thought to have escalated to about $667 million.

 

Following the initial vote, DuPuy expressed disappointment and said baseball would pursue arbitration to enforce the 2004 agreement.

 

"Today's vote is a serious setback to all those in the Washington community who sought the return of a team to the nation's capital," he said in a statement.

 

After the council failed to approve a lease by the Dec. 31 deadline, baseball filed for mediation, a preliminary step before arbitration. The city and baseball officials then reached a revised agreement, which included a $20 million contribution from baseball for stadium construction. Williams also negotiated a side deal with construction companies setting a "guaranteed maximum price" for the city at $320 million.

 

The Expos were bought by the other 29 teams before the 2002 season, and commissioner Bud Selig has refused to sell the team until a lease acceptable to baseball is approved.

 

AP Baseball Writer Ronald Blum in New York and writer Derrill Holly in Washington contributed to this report.

UPDATE ON STORY

 

WASHINGTON ? (AP) ? Major League Baseball responded skeptically to a revised lease for the Washington Nationals that was approved early Wednesday by the District of Columbia Council, which rejected an earlier proposal just hours before.

 

During a series of sessions that began Tuesday and lasted more than 14 hours, council members rejected the lease 8-5, then approved it 9-4 after capping the city's spending at just under $611 million.

 

"Major League Baseball has not yet been provided with the filings made by the D.C. Sports & Entertainment Commission with the City Council last Friday, nor the text of the legislation passed by the Council last night,'' baseball spokesman Rich Levin said in a statement. "We are very concerned about what we heard during the debate, and we need to read the materials and the legislative language so we can

determine whether they are consistent with the agreements between Major League Baseball and the city.''

 

The District of Columbia and baseball reached an agreement in 2004 that led to the Montreal Expos moving to Washington and becoming the Nationals. It called for a lease to be in place by Dec. 31, 2005, and when that deadline wasn't met, baseball filed for mediation.

 

After the initial rejection Tuesday, baseball's chief operating officer, Bob DuPuy, said the sport would proceed to arbitration in an effort to enforce its 2004 agreement.

 

Washington Mayor Anthony A. Williams said he expected baseball will soon sign the lease.

 

"It wasn't a pretty landing, but we brought the thing in,'' Williams said at his weekly news briefing.