WASHINGTON — Area leaders jockeying to be the home of the new Washington Commanders Stadium hope the project would bring a huge economic boost to their state or city. But business experts say that’s far from a guarantee.
The areas around Capital One Area and Nationals Park have seen huge growth, although in the case of Nats Park the economic explosion was slowed by the recession.
George Mason University business professor George Perry said when it comes to new football stadiums, the potential economic impact is even tougher to predict.
“Because if you're a restaurant or a hotel, you can't depend on 10 football games and you know, a dozen or half a dozen concerts that can fill an 80,000-seat stadium to run your business,” said Perry, who worked as a sports marketing executive for 23 years, including more than a year with Washington's team. “Whereas if your hockey arena or a basketball arena is in the city, there's 60 plus games there or baseball, where there's 80 plus games, it's easy to get there. If you're not going for games, you're going for concerts, and I think it's easier to build up that business around the stadium.”
There are examples of football stadiums spurring growth, like the New England Patriots Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts. Gillette Stadium now sits adjacent to Patriot Place, a bustling 1.3 million square foot retail mega center.
That's the type of development Maryland leaders hoped to see spring up around FedEx Field, but it never did.
“I do remember when I worked [for Washington Commanders], if you're in Ashburn and you want to go to lunch, or go to a restaurant, or do anything, it’s very easy to do that,” Perry said of his time working for the team.“But whenever I had to work at the stadium during the week, where did I go? There was nothing. There was nothing there.”
Perry said it’s always a safer bet to see economic growth around a new stadium if that stadium is located in an urban area with an established infrastructure and access to public transportation. That would be far from a sure thing if the Washington Commanders find a new home in Maryland, or make a move to Virginia.
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