Not all sports fans were happy to hear about baseball's return to the District. Some soccer fans are worried about how the District's soccer team, D.C. United, will share Robert F. Kennedy Stadium with the Expos.
The city plans to house the Expos in RFK stadium from next April until their new stadium is finished in 2007. Maintaining adequate seating and field quality for the overlapping soccer and baseball seasons will be a challenge for those three years, because the sports need very different fields, according to ESPN.
In the current field setup for soccer, stadium seating covers part of what would be the baseball outfield, and grass covers what would be the infield.
Solutions, like having removable grass panels to cover the baseball team's dirt infield for soccer games, have been suggested, according to Chris Bender, communications director for the D.C. Planning and Economic Development office.
"Baseball is not taking over," said Bender. "We've made it very clear we have a tenant."
D.C. United President and CEO Kevin Payne sent a statement to season ticket holders assuring them soccer would not be compromised for baseball.
"The D.C. Sports and Entertainment Commission has committed to us that it will work with United and our fans to minimize any inconvenience that might be caused by the conversion of RFK Stadium to a baseball configuration," Payne said in the statement.
"We also look forward to working with the [commission] to ensure that the playing surface will remain at the high standard to which our players and fans have become accustomed," he said.
Bender said there are plans to build a soccer stadium at Poplar Point on the Anacostia River, not far from where the new baseball stadium will be.
"D.C. United deserves a new stadium, and expects a new stadium," he said.
The soccer stadium would be financed by both public and private funds. Bender said the baseball stadium development plan has made investors more interested in a new soccer stadium.
"I think soccer fans should stay tuned, it's going to be exciting next year with all the activity in RFK," Bender said. "But fans should keep supporting the idea of a new stadium"
