Hail No to a New Stadium at RFK - Add Your Name Below

Read my August 1, 2023 op-ed in the Washington Post.

If you believe the 190 acres of RFK's campus could be more than the next NFL stadium, say #HailNo and sign this petition below:

"As a DC resident, I am against a deal that gives away a single square foot of land or a single District tax dollar to build a new stadium.

  • I believe the 190 acres alongside the Anacostia River could be so much more than oceans of asphalt for surface parking and a 60,000 seat stadium.

  • On average, most NFL stadiums only hold 10 to 20 events annually outside of eight NFL home games, meaning the stadium sits empty more than 300 days a year. An enormous space that sits empty doesn’t spur economic growth or create meaingful jobs and doesn’t help the surrounding community.

  • Make no mistake - people drive to NFL games and they're going to park somewhere, regardless of how much is available. At San Francisco's new stadium, they had to rent out all of the parking lots at a nearby amusement park. Where do you think people will park around RFK if there isn't enough parking for fans?

  • Nationwide, since 1997 we've seen the NFL pit communities against each other while collecting more than $6.7 billion dollars from taxpayers to build stadiums for privately-owned teams. Overall, local taxpayers end up footing around half the bill for a new NFL stadium.  

  • The costs of these projects are always higher than estimated. The five most recent newly-constructed NFL stadiums have surpassed more than $1 billion dollars each!

  • As a DC resident, I don't want to see DC hoodwinked into paying for a billionaire's stadium. The District needs our tax dollars to create new housing at all levels, support local DC entrepreneurs who run small and local business, take urgent steps forward to shift to a 100% clean energy environment, build larger and modern schools for our growing city, fund our Metro system, and in general spend money to make life better and easier for DC residents.

  • Sitting on the banks of the historic Anacostia River, a new stadium and all of the traffic and trash that would come along, would set the Anacostia River's improvement back. RFK has never had to meet standards set by the National Environmental Policy Act, and I am concerned any deal worked out under the outgoing Congress would try to extend the exemption to holding the site accountable to environmental standards.

Dedicating millions of dollars to bring an NFL stadium to the District is a bad deal and a poor use of an incredible opportunity. 

Thank you."

Who's signing

Nick Alberti
Charles Ferguson
Catharine Ferguson
Larry Martin
Theresa McLaughlin
Amy Hubbard
Forrest Cinelli
Mark Rodeffer
Jim Vore
Carole lewis anderson
Evelyn Fraser
Casey Studhalter
Nico Whalen
Peter Harnik
David Morris
Lea Howe
Hilary Russell
Susan Holmes
Kenyon Weaver
Chris powell
Henry Schwarz
Chris Landis
Ethan Landis
Moira Egan
Maria "Mia" Grosjean
Ellen Murphy
Edna Temaner
Denise Curry
Mary Mann
Kimberly Katzenbarger
4,002 SIGNATURES
4,000 signatures

Will you sign?

  • Nick Alberti
    signed 2023-09-01 21:39:57 -0400
  • Charles Ferguson
    signed 2023-09-01 16:14:34 -0400
  • Catharine Ferguson
    signed 2023-09-01 16:12:59 -0400
  • Larry Martin
    signed 2023-08-31 15:15:29 -0400
  • Theresa McLaughlin
    signed 2023-08-31 14:41:03 -0400
  • Amy Hubbard
    signed 2023-08-30 13:25:42 -0400
  • Forrest Cinelli
    signed 2023-08-29 15:54:53 -0400
    Waste of money. Fund WMATA and build more housing instead!
  • Mark Rodeffer
    signed 2023-08-28 22:27:02 -0400
  • Jim Vore
    signed 2023-08-28 14:41:59 -0400
  • Carole lewis anderson
    signed 2023-08-28 12:24:14 -0400
    All studies of the economics of a downtown/neighborhood stadium show declines in healthy neighborhoods, damage to the environment from massive impermeable surfaces, wasted land surface that could/should be used for the local community, unsafe and unhealthy vehicular traffic at game times, wasted land , and other negative outcomes. Instead this beautiful land should be designed for residential use with walkways and two-wheel rideways that connect all neighborhoods of DC to each other and to the waterside. What a spectacular and unusual gift this land would be to DC to enhance the growth and development of healthy affordable living for DC residents.
  • Evelyn Fraser
    signed 2023-08-28 12:01:48 -0400
  • Casey Studhalter
    signed 2023-08-28 12:01:44 -0400
  • Nico Whalen
    signed 2023-08-28 11:17:33 -0400
  • Peter Harnik
    signed 2023-08-28 10:50:29 -0400
  • David Morris
    signed 2023-08-28 09:00:53 -0400
  • Lea Howe
    signed 2023-08-28 08:48:51 -0400
  • Hilary Russell
    signed via 2023-08-28 08:03:26 -0400
  • Susan Holmes
    signed 2023-08-28 07:21:03 -0400
  • Kenyon Weaver
    signed 2023-08-28 06:18:06 -0400
  • Chris powell
    signed 2023-08-28 05:57:26 -0400
  • Henry Schwarz
    signed 2023-08-28 02:09:07 -0400
  • Chris Landis
    signed via 2023-08-28 01:55:16 -0400
    Don’t forget the NFL is already a licensed monopoly?
  • Ethan Landis
    signed 2023-08-27 23:01:08 -0400
  • Moira Egan
    signed 2023-08-27 21:37:51 -0400
  • Maria "Mia" Grosjean
    signed 2023-08-27 21:30:01 -0400
    Absolutely no way to a new ridiculous, useless stadium in DC.
  • Ellen Murphy
    signed 2023-08-27 20:24:55 -0400
    We already have Nationals stadium. We don’t need another one. Housing and mixed retail is a better option. Also, don’t destroy the open air market and let’s retain the RFK name somehow to honor a great man.
  • Edna Temaner
    signed 2023-08-27 19:49:57 -0400
  • Denise Curry
    signed 2023-08-27 19:29:54 -0400
  • Mary Mann
    signed 2023-08-27 19:20:51 -0400
  • Kimberly Katzenbarger
    signed 2023-08-27 17:41:55 -0400