Virginia lawmakers might think they’ve been wrestling with this question: Should the state give up about $1 billion in tax revenue to build the Washington Commanders a new National Football League stadium?
But they’ve really been deciding this: Should Virginia forfeit possibly unlimited tax dollars to finance not just a stadium but team offices, unrelated office space, retail stores, restaurants, lodging and anything else that the team, stadium authority and local government are up for?
It’s no secret that team owner Daniel Snyder wants to build not merely a stadium, but a vast commercial and residential complex that supporters call a “mini-city,” including a convention center, concert venue, hotels, restaurants and housing. Tax revenue generated from that broader development would go toward paying down bonds, but it was widely understood that the bonds would finance construction of only the stadium.
Click here to read the rest of the article written by Laura Vozzella over at The Washington Post
