The deal is expected to be revealed in full tomorrow (Wednesday), and must still be approved by D.C. Council. From the Washington Post:
D.C. Mayor Muriel E. Bowser has reached a tentative deal to build a $56.3 million Wizards basketball practice facility and Mystics arena for majority team owner Ted Leonsis on the east campus of the former St. Elizabeths hospital in one of the poorest corners of the nation’s capital.
Details are still in flux, but officials said the city plans to build and own the facility while the teams’ owner would contribute $10 million to aid the surrounding neighborhood. Events DC, the District’s quasi-public convention and sports agency, would manage the property and contribute up to $32.5 million of the cost.
The project would include a modern training center similar to those other NBA teams have built in recent years. The Mystics would move their home games to a 5,000-seat arena at St. Elizabeths from the Verizon Center.
Max Brown, chair of Events DC, said the project marked a chance to bring entertainment and sporting events to a neglected part of the city.
“This has been an under served area for a long time, and this project is going to catalyze and transform the St. Elizabeths campus,” Brown said.
The talks are further evidence that Bowser wants to make new sports venues a central part of her economic development efforts.
