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

Julia Smeltzer
Chris Coletta
Wesley Brown
Mike Chaney
Laura Youngs
Paul McGoldrick
Sylvia Graham
Rebecca Barson
Gwynedd Arbury
Claire Patenaude
Ellanie Hershberger
Shaun Lynch
Lori Minichini
Dave Richard
Jeff peterson
Katherine Myer
Daniel Irish
Tim Krepp
Daniel Moore
Sean Maiwald
Beth Venit
Christina Duhig
Beth Linas
Theresa Sullivan
Mary Ann Settlemire
Sarah Bagge
Julianne Weis
Maryanne Salm
Brian McLane
Mark Meyerson
4,004 SIGNATURES
4,000 signatures

Will you sign?

  • Julia Smeltzer
    signed 2018-12-14 15:10:15 -0500
  • Chris Coletta
    signed 2018-12-14 15:09:47 -0500
  • Wesley Brown
    signed 2018-12-14 15:09:32 -0500
  • Mike Chaney
    signed 2018-12-14 15:07:21 -0500
  • Laura Youngs
    signed 2018-12-14 15:05:56 -0500
  • Paul McGoldrick
    signed 2018-12-14 15:05:21 -0500
  • Sylvia Graham
    signed 2018-12-14 15:05:16 -0500
  • Rebecca Barson
    signed 2018-12-14 15:04:18 -0500
  • Gwynedd Arbury
    signed 2018-12-14 15:03:50 -0500
  • Claire Patenaude
    signed 2018-12-14 15:03:48 -0500
  • Ellanie Hershberger
    signed 2018-12-14 15:02:29 -0500
  • Shaun Lynch
    signed 2018-12-14 15:01:06 -0500
  • Lori Minichini
    signed 2018-12-14 14:59:25 -0500
  • Dave Richard
    signed 2018-12-14 14:56:53 -0500
    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.
  • Jeff peterson
    signed 2018-12-14 14:56:12 -0500
  • Katherine Myer
    signed 2018-12-14 14:56:08 -0500
  • Daniel Irish
    signed 2018-12-14 14:56:05 -0500
  • Tim Krepp
    signed 2018-12-14 14:54:34 -0500
    Who looks at Dan Snyder and goes, “yeah, let’s do business with him?”
  • Daniel Moore
    signed 2018-12-14 14:54:32 -0500
  • Sean Maiwald
    signed 2018-12-14 14:53:27 -0500
  • Beth Venit
    signed 2018-12-14 14:52:52 -0500
  • Christina Duhig
    signed 2018-12-14 14:52:36 -0500
  • Beth Linas
    signed 2018-12-14 14:51:33 -0500
  • Theresa Sullivan
    signed 2018-12-14 14:49:10 -0500
  • Mary Ann Settlemire
    signed via 2018-12-14 14:47:45 -0500
    I am deeply opposed to using the land at the RFK Stadium site for anything other than badly needed recreation space for the all the citizens of Washington, DC. It is a waste of taxpayer dollars to give land over to a multi-million dollar sports project when the organization wanting to develop the stadium area could afford to find alternative sites elsewhere.
  • Sarah Bagge
    signed 2018-12-14 14:47:28 -0500
  • Julianne Weis
    signed 2018-12-14 14:46:53 -0500
  • Maryanne Salm
    signed 2018-12-14 14:46:32 -0500
  • Brian McLane
    signed 2018-12-14 14:43:31 -0500
  • Mark Meyerson
    signed 2018-12-14 14:42:49 -0500