Re: [花邊] 巫師隊老闆計畫將球隊搬家到維吉尼亞北部

之前巫師要搬家到Virginia的事情鬧得沸沸揚揚。
結果今天新聞出來，巫師跟冰球的華盛頓首都還是會留在DC裡面。
以下是寄給球迷的信：

Dear Fans and Supporters,

I am thrilled to share that moments ago I signed a letter of intent with D.C.Mayor Muriel Bowser for a major partnership to renovate and modernize CapitalOne Arena, expanding Monumental's business operations into Gallery Place,
transforming Downtown D.C. into a premier entertainment destination. It is
one that aligns our growth mindset with a public-private partnership, which
we have been seeking.

About an hour ago, we publicly celebrated this big new partnership with the
city – the Mayor, City Council, Metro Police, our neighbors, and business
partners – and announced this truly new and unique opportunity for
collaboration. This is the first and only letter of intent we have signed
regarding a new or upgraded facility. I spoke earlier today with the Governorof Virginia, Mayor of Alexandria, and CEO of JBG SMITH, Matt Kelly, to thank
them for their time and efforts on our proposal and to inform them of this
newly formally signed deal with D.C.

The assertive actions of Mayor Bowser and the D.C. Council juxtaposed againstour experience in Virginia evolved our view of the best partner to support
the growth of our business. In the past three months, the pivot and great
work in D.C. were in stark relief from what we ultimately experienced in
Virginia. While the Virginia House of Delegates did great work in evaluating
our proposal, the Senate sadly did no work in even providing us a fair
hearing on the true financial benefit of the project. Contrasted with the
open level of collaboration that we now have in D.C., we know we are in the
best position to meet the next big objectives for the benefit of our fans.

What we have been able to negotiate in D.C. gives us tremendous
opportunities. First, we are gaining 200,000 square feet of additional space
as we will expand our business and hospitality operations into Gallery Place.With this expansion of space, we have the ability to program the arena and
campus to drive more options for visitors and provide more services to our
players and our fans. We also sought a deal that would right-size our
organization with the Nationals, Orioles, and Ravens as to their venues and
partnerships with the City and State. We also sought a new level of
cooperation with a government entity around services such as traffic
mitigation, safety and security, and cleanliness. We also sought a better andmore efficient way to communicate with regulatory agencies and cut through
red tape with more efficient approvals. We also sought more direct control ofour practice facilities and office buildings. And more control of our future.

We expect to create new viewing options, better and different sight lines,
more comfortable seating, upgrade technical and functional infrastructure,
and modernize the building as we shift from an analog to a digital world.

This new deal achieves most of, if not all, our key objectives. And I was
very impressed with the Mayor’s stick-with-it attitude — she never gave up
and was always reaching out to me to keep and expand our business operations
in D.C. Gratefully, we kept a good dialogue going with the City and our Mayorand have netted this opportunity for a new chapter for our organization.

And that is in no small part because of the tremendous work undertaken by
Mayor Bowser and the D.C. Council. Since the announcement that we were
pursuing a partnership with Virginia in December 2023, D.C. officials have
taken concrete action to support Monumental Sports and the downtown
community. In January 2024, the Mayor announced the formation of the Gallery
Place/Chinatown Task Force to articulate a defined vision surrounding CapitalOne Arena and committed $400 million for the Downtown Action Plan and a
Downtown Public Realm Plan to ensure the long-term success of Downtown D.C.’
s commercial core. The Mayor also opened the first Safe Commercial Corridor
Hub in the Chinatown neighborhood staffed by outreach teams from multiple
public safety and human services agencies that will be able to respond in
real-time to challenges in the community. And earlier this month, the Councilpassed the Secure DC omnibus legislation with a multi-prong strategy and
tactics to combat crime, including a designation around the Chinatown
neighborhood as a drug-free enforcement zone.

With this concentration of efforts downtown and particularly around our
building, we are witnessing the city taking seriously the central role we canand will now play in downtown revitalization. The Mayor has articulated that
we are a top priority for her administration, and we really believe it to be
true.

Sports teams provide incredible benefits to the surrounding community and
drive extraordinary economic impact and a strong public private partnership
is essential to sustaining both – which the Mayor recognizes. According to
research conducted by the DC Business Improvement District, activity at
Capital One Arena generated $54 million in DC tax revenue in 2023. Across ourregion, public private partnerships are the norm for professional sports
teams: the MLB’s Washington Nationals secured $700 million in public
financing to build Nationals Park and $400 million in public financing to
build Audi Field for the MLS’s D.C. United. The Maryland Stadium Authority
recently announced a $1.2 billion investment for Oriole Park at Camden Yards,home of the MLB’s Baltimore Orioles and M&T Bank Stadium, home of the NFL’s
Baltimore Ravens, each receiving $600 million for renovations and upgrades ontop of the original public funding used in the planning, financing and
construction of both.

So, through our own public-private partnership, we will transform Capital OneArena and engage in new space across Gallery Place to create a truly iconic
epicenter – worthy of this iconic city. We will get more space, dedicated
resources to create the family-friendly entertainment zone we’ve envisioned
to service our millions of customers and support for our employees and
athletes to make this a destination to attract and retain their talent.

What’s most inspiring in this moment is the City’s shared vision that we
achieve great success in our business. The new downtown plan which Mayor
Bowser has articulated is impressive and she has made financial commitment
from the city. The passage of the new crime bill led by Councilmember Brooke
Pinto is very important to all citizens and businesses.

I truly applaud the Mayor for recognizing the incredible value we bring,
create and help foster and for evolving the business-friendly climate in D.C.And today we celebrate this incredible milestone for our business, for our
city, for our employees, fans, and athletes!

Our work begins now to build a state-of-the-art marquee venue for with new
seating options, five-star culinary experiences that go way beyond the
traditional game-day fare, and cutting-edge technology, right in the middle
of the city. We're on a mission to create a masterpiece – and redefine the
sports and entertainment experience, not just for the DMV, but for all sportsfans.

Get ready to be part of something extraordinary!

Ted

大意就是稍早球隊跟華盛頓特區政府達成協議，順便臭了一下維吉尼亞的參議院。
Monumental Sports(巫師跟首都的母公司)會把Capital One Arena周邊納入業務範圍，
然後升級球場設施跟座位。

反正這樣看來是代表當初跟Virginia談的真的是在威脅DC政府而已。
現在巫師不只球隊要重建，場館也要開始重建了。
期待普殺隊們有朝一日可以到新球場集結。

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