D.C. Mayor Muriel E. Bowser (D) on Wednesday said leaders in neighboring Maryland are holding up a deal that could pave the way for the Washington Commanders football team to build its next stadium at the RFK Stadium site.
During an annual Federal City Council meeting, Bowser said Maryland is delaying an agreement over federal legislation that would give the District greater control of the RFK site by linking that deal to the state’s pursuit of its other priorities, including separate legislation promising that the federal government will fully fund efforts to rebuild the collapsed Francis Scott Key Bridge, estimated to cost as much as $1.9 billion.
“We’re being held hostage by Maryland,” Bowser told her colleagues at the group of business and civic leaders when asked about the status of the RFK legislation during a question-and-answer session at the meeting, according to three people who were in the room and spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe private conversations.
Bowser also told colleagues that the RFK bill “cannot be held up” by Maryland’s quest for bridge funding, according to those people.
