A city investment proposal that would help bring a 14,500-seat women’s soccer stadium to Denver cleared a key hurdle Wednesday when a skeptical City Council committee advanced the $70 million deal to help move the concept forward.
Members of the South Platte River Committee had grilled the team’s owner and Mayor Mike Johnston’s office over the idea earlier this month, saying they felt rushed and worrying about the financial impact of the deal.
But Wednesday, the temperature was much cooler as council members asked questions largely about the details of the proposal and ultimately decided to push it through to the full council.
“I think in the last meeting, they just didn’t have enough information and weren’t comfortable,” said Rob Cohen, the not-yet-named team’s owner.
The intergovernmental agreement, which will go through two more rounds of votes in the next several weeks, lays out a $70 million investment from the city to own the 14-acre Santa Fe Yards property in Baker and pay for site and access improvements. The team’s owners would then pay the full costs of a $150 million to $200 million stadium on the land.
The stadium — set to open in 2028 — is part of a deal with the National Women’s Soccer League announced in January to make Denver the home of its next team.
The city’s Department of Finance proposed paying for the project investments indirectly through a reallocation of interest dollars raised through a bond program voters approved in 2017; that shift would free up capital improvement money in the city’s budget.
If the council approves the proposal, the city would be able to spend up to $50 million for the on-site development and up to $20 million for off-site improvements.
Between the two committee meetings this month, Cohen and Jeff Dolan, the chief strategist for the mayor’s office, met with council members individually to answer questions about the project. They organized a site tour of the lot last Saturday. They also tweaked the fine print of the agreement to make the deal more favorable to the city, they said.
“There are a few things I definitely became more comfortable with because of the time that was put in,” Councilwoman Sarah Parady said.
The Wednesday meeting wasn’t all smooth sailing, though. Councilwoman Jamie Torres, the chair of the committee, took issue with Dolan characterizing the day’s action as a “conditional vote.”
“I don’t think council would be digging in as deeply on the details if this was inconsequential to future votes,” she said. “This is a big deal because we’re talking about establishing a commitment to use taxpayer dollars for something.”
Several council members also expressed interest in the team engaging in a community benefit agreement with the surrounding neighborhood. Cohen said he wasn’t prepared to provide a figure for how much the ownership group would commit to such an agreement.
Eleven of the 13 council members were present in the South Platte River Committee meeting. Committees can’t kill legislation and can decide only whether it is ready for the full council to vote on.
Councilwoman Amanda Sawyer emphasized her hope that with the city’s proposed investment, the team would include the word “Denver” in its name.
“We’re working on the name. We are still gathering information from the community at large,” Cohen said. “We heard you loud and clear.”
He added the group plans to announce the team name later this year.
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