The plan to build a new arena in Alexandria for the Washington Capitals and Wizards was dealt a major blow Thursday, as Virginia lawmakers declined to provide the necessary funding in their annual budget.
Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin at Thursday’s press conference about the arena funding.
Senate Finance and Appropriations Chair L. Louise Lucas told The Washington Post Wednesday evening that the arena language wouldn’t be in the budget agreement that lawmakers would unveil Thursday.
Lucas, who also posted a meme on X, formerly Twitter, of her celebrating the death of the arena project, posted a release with the highlights of the budget agreement Thursday afternoon that didn’t mention the arena funding.
After Lucas made the decision official, Gov. Glenn Youngkin, who announced the deal alongside Wizards and Capitals owner Ted Leonsis in December, held a press conference Thursday to lambast the decision.
“I believe the Senate is about to make a colossal mistake,” Youngkin said.
Click here to read the rest of the article written by Jon Banister over at Bisnow
