The Charlestown Neighborhood Council held a special neighborhood meeting Sept. 26 to form a soccer stadium committee, and the results were productive.
Donovan, Mary Boucher, Chairperson Tom Cunha, and Philip Carr III, are pictured at the Sept. 26 neighborhood meeting at the Knights of
Columbus.
With CNC Chair Tom Cunha presiding, the Council met with a group of residents and determined that a main committee and four sub-committees will be established once the the change in language is made by legislators that would allow for the site in Everett to be used for a new soccer stadium.
And with increasing speculation that the proposal could advance by as early as the end of October, the CNC has indicated publicly that it wants to “have a seat at the table” when the public process and negotiations begin for the project.
Sen. Sal DiDomenico, who represents Charlestown in the Senate, has been the undisputed champion of the proposal to build a 25,000-seat, state-of-the-art soccer stadium on the site of a closed power plant across from the Encore Boston Harbor resort/casino. The Kraft family, owner of the New England Patriots and the New England Revolution professional soccer team, would move their MLS franchise to Everett, where the Revolution would play their home games.
Cunha said the CNC will react accordingly when the proposal reaches the next stage, so the recruitment of members for the CNC soccer committee could commence at the CNC’s regular monthly meeting in November.
“Once the legislation is passed, we’re going to fine tune the committee and likely create four subcommittees: mitigation, transportation, environment, and quality of life,” said Cunha.
One key aspect of the stadium discussion at the CNC meeting focused on parking for fans who would be traveling from throughout New England to attend the games. Cunha’s idea to have satellite parking lots in other cities seemed to draw the support of the group. Fans would park their vehicles in Somerville and Woburn, for example, and board buses to arrive at the entrance to the stadium.
Rep. Ryan speaks about
plans for soccer stadium
In an interview Wednesday, Rep. Dan Ryan of Charlestown said he supports “the language that is in the state economic development bill which would remove the land for the soccer stadium out of the designated port area.”
“Right now the land is prohibited from being used for a soccer stadium, so this is very early on in the discussions,” said Ryan. “The real discussion happens when it becomes a viable use, and I do support the idea of taking the land out of the designated port area, so then we can have a larger discussion. I do support the idea of a soccer stadium because that is what’s on the table right now. There are a bunch of other things that I could support, too, that would open up that waterfront for the first time in 100 years to the public also clean up an industrial waste site.”
Ryan said he admires what the Kraft family has done in building Gillette Stadium and developing the surrounding area in Foxboro.
“I love what they’ve done with Patriot Place [a shopping, dining, and entertainment complex adjacent to Gillette Stadium],” said Ryan. “I think the Krafts are great people on and off the football field. In terms of a business venture such as a major stadium, I haven’t worked with them in the past. I like what they did in Foxboro, which is a year-round venue that’s not just related to sports. But Foxboro is a lot difference place than Boston or Everett.”