Chamber of Commerce urges lawmakers to lure Commanders to Virginia

The Prince William Chamber of Commerce is urging lawmakers to do whatever it takes to bring professional football to the county.

The Chamber issued a statement on Thursday, April 28, urging the General Assembly to lure the Washington Commanders (formerly Redskins) from its home in Landover, Md., and build a new stadium in Virginia.

One of the core missions of the Prince William Chamber of Commerce is to support new opportunities for economic growth and advancement, not only in our county, but throughout the Commonwealth as many our members conduct business statewide.  Representing companies which employ nearly 70,000 individuals, the Prince William Chamber is a positive and strong voice for the business community.  An NFL stadium and the related retail, hospitality, and commercial development anticipated to accompany it could generate thousands of jobs and create millions of dollars in net new tax revenue for the Commonwealth.

The Prince William Chamber expects that the public policy necessary to realize this opportunity would be balanced and make sense for both the Virginia taxpayers and the project.  As such, The Prince William Chamber of Commerce encourages our state legislators to pass the bill to create the Virginia Football Stadium Authority, as a necessary precursor for the Commonwealth to remain competitive in its endeavor to bring an NFL team to our state.

The Washington Commanders are looking to move its stadium to Virginia and are considering Prince William and Loudoun counties as its future home.

Two sites in Prince William County, one in Woodbridge and another near Dumfries — would be prime locations for the football team due to their proximity to Interstate 95 and public transportation options, sports backers say.

Potomac Shores, near Dumfries, and an area around the Horner Road Commuter Lot, at I-95 and Prince William Parkway, are considered.

Potomac Shores is primarily residential development. When it broke ground nearly 10 years ago, developers promised a town center with shops, a hotel, and a Virginia Railway Express station. However, nothing has materialized.

The area near the Woodbridge commuter lot, now called “The Landing at Prince William,” sits near Potomac Mills mall. County leaders consider the area a transit hub and a prime location for a future Metro station.

The team will be evaluating its options over the coming year and could move sometime before 2026 or 2027. However, team officials didn’t say when the team would make a final decision.

A new stadium in Prince William County would most likely be a mixed-use complex with retail shops and homes, said Virginia State Senator Jeremy McPike told Potomac Local News in December 2021. The new stadium would be smaller than the current 82,000-seat FedEx Field in Landover, Md., with a smaller parking lot, relying more on public transit to move gameday fans.

According to a 2021 study, an extension of Metro’s Blue or Yellow lines from Fairfax County to Woodbridge could cost $30 billion to build. County taxpayers would also be expected to pay about $100 million a year to fund the transit system.

A stadium built near the Potomac River could spur additional economic development by opening up the waterfront to new business opportunities and new ferry connections to National Harbor, Md., and Washington, D.C.

In 2017, the Prince William Board of County Supervisors sent the Potomac Nationals, a Minor League Baseball team playing as the Fredericksburg Nationals, packing. Leaders declined to pay for constructing a new $35 million stadium and lease it back to the team over 30 years.

The following year, team owner Art Silber announced he would move the team 35 miles south to the Celebrate Virginia complex. After Minor League Baseball postponed the 2020 season, the team played its inaugural season this past summer.