The
Washington
Wizards
and
the
Washington
Capitals
have
called
Capital
One
Arena
home
but
it
appears
that
a
change
of
location
is
on
the
horizon.
The
owner
of
the
team
and
Virginia’s
governor
announced
a
plan
that
would
bring
the
teams
eight
miles
south
of
the
city
to
Alexandria,
Va.
in
2028.
CNBC
reports
that
Monumental
Sports
&
Entertainment,
which
owns
the
Wizards
and
Capitals,
CEO
Ted
Leonis
and
Gov.
Glenn
Youngkin
announced
a
plan
that
will
bring
a
new
20,000-seat
area,
and
practice
facilities
along
with
a
mixed-used
development
to
the
Northern
Virginia
city,
which
rests
in
the
shadow
of
the
Nation’s
Capitol.
Below
is
a
statement
from
Governor
Youngkin:
“This
is
the
most
visionary
sports
and
entertainment
development
in
the
world,
bringing
together
entertainment,
sports,
and
technology
in
the
most
advanced
innovation
corridor
in
the
United
States:
a
once-in-a-generation
and
historic
development
for
the
Commonwealth,
sports
fans,
and
all
Virginians.
The
Commonwealth
will
now
be
home
to
two
professional
sports
teams,
a
new
corporate
headquarters,
and
over
30,000
new
jobs
–
this
is
monumental.
This
was
only
made
possible
through
consistent
collaboration
between
Virginia’s
economic
development
team,
the
Monumental
Sports
&
Entertainment
team,
the
City
of
Alexandria,
our
administration
and
the
Virginia
General
Assembly’s
Major
Employment
and
Investment
Project
Approval
Commission,
and
JGB
SMITH.
Virginia
is
undoubtedly
the
best
place
to
live,
work,
raise
a
family,
and
now
watch
basketball
or
hockey.”
Leonis
added
a
statement
as
well:
“We
are
committed
to
providing
world-class
fan
experiences
while
continuously
evolving
our
teams,
deepening
community
ties,
and
solidifying
our
role
as
leaders
at
the
forefront
of
sports
and
technology.
The
opportunity
to
expand
to
this
70-acre
site
in
Virginia,
neighboring
industry-leading
innovators,
and
a
great
academic
partner,
would
enable
us
to
further
our
creativity
and
achieve
next-generation,
leading
work
–
all
while
keeping
our
fans
and
the
community
at
the
forefront
of
everything
we
do.”
The
move
faces
legislative
approval
from
lawmakers
during
the
next
Virginia
General
Assembly,
where
Democrats
control
the
upper
chamber
while
Republicans,
which
is
Youngkin’s
party,
control
the
lower
chamber.
If
Monumental
does
indeed
move
its
business
holdings
and
operations
to
Alexandria,
it
would
leave
downtown
Washington,
D.C.,
which
some
experts
say
is
in
decline,
without
the
economic
boosts
of
games
and
other
events.
—
Photo:
Getty
