Not even a cold spring rain could keep Boston Mayor Michelle Wu from taking a victory lap at White Stadium in April.
The day before, April 2, a judge had ruled in the city’s favor for the second time on litigation seeking to halt the renovation of the stadium by the city and Boston Legacy FC, the new National Women’s Soccer League team that will use White Stadium as a home pitch.
The ruling gave further credence to the city’s argument that the parcel of land White Stadium sits on in Franklin Park isn’t subject to a part of the state constitution that deals with environmental protections and open space. And it was another big step towards the city’s goal of transforming the dilapidated venue into both a hub for Boston Public Schools athletes and a destination for pro sports.
“This is an exciting day because we’re here to celebrate a huge victory not only for the city of Boston, but for our young people, our student-athletes, our coaches, our community members, every park lover, every resident of the city who will benefit from the services and the excitement that this investment will bring to our community,” Wu said.
Wu touts the renovation as a win for a stadium that has gone through decades of neglect but will now have a private partner to help pay for renovations and maintain its upkeep.
But her biggest rival in this year’s mayoral race, Josh Kraft, has sought support from those who are skeptical of the project, its costs and the partnership with the soccer team. Now, with work on the stadium already underway, who voters choose at the polls will have a very big impact on the future of a venue everyone agrees needs some major work.
Kraft may be swimming upstream to convince Bostonians on this issue: an Emerson College poll in February that found that 53% of Boston voters support the redevelopment of White Stadium, with 22% opposed and 26% unsure.
Here’s where the race stands on this issue.
What Kraft would do differently
If he were to be elected as mayor, Kraft told GBH News, he would go in a much different direction with White Stadium’s renovation. He’s vowed to cancel the contract and estimates the current project could cost the city as much as $172 million.
“The stadium could be completely remodeled, repaired and updated for a fraction of that cost,” Kraft said. “And it could be used 100% of the time by BPS students and the families that live around the park. And I would make that commitment as mayor.”
The city has pushed back on Kraft’s price quote. Officials estimated in December that the city’s share of the renovation cost would be $91 million, though Wu recently acknowledged that the final number will likely be higher.
What’s Wu’s plan?
The stadium was built in the 1940s and, before it was demolished earlier this year, had a whole range of issues — including fire damage and not being ADA compliant. It was used for everything from school sports to graduations to community events.
Under the current plan, seating capacity will be 10,000 and the stadium will have a regulation track, expanded athletic facilities and expanded hours that the facility is usable. And, importantly for the city, Boston Legacy FC will pay more than half the construction costs and all the costs to operate and maintain the facility.
Speaking to GBH News, Wu said there have been multiple plans and ideas to renovate the stadium over the years.
“And each time over the last 40 years that’s there’s been a promise and a pledge and a plan to do something at White Stadium, it’s fallen apart and it’s never materialized,” Wu said. “This is the first time that we are actually getting it done.”
She adamantly believes that this project will give BPS students a facility they deserve.
And while some of the opposition can be boiled down to a fear of gentrification, Wu, who won every precinct that made up Franklin Park four years ago, pointed out that her administration has unveiled a citywide anti-displacement action plan to help prevent that.
“We can’t be in a space where the only choices are accepting long-standing, run down, subpar facilities and resources or feel like the new shiny, beautiful living environment is going to be for someone else,” she said. “It has to be for our community. And that is what this project is designed to prove.”
How the project’s been received
Reaction to the project has been as varied as the residents that surround Franklin Park. The Emerald Necklace Conservancy, which works to support the string of Boston parks designed by Frederick Law Olmsted, has been a leading critic of the plan and has spearheaded litigation against it. They and other opponents claim the renovation would amount to privatization of the city’s public park land and have reservations about everything from traffic and parking to environmental impact. The Boston branch of the NAACP has expressed its own concerns about the project.
Meanwhile, the nonprofit Franklin Park Coalition has supported the project, which it says will be a benefit to the park, local community and BPS athletes.
Antonio Halliday is the head track and field coach at Brighton High and believes the project needed to be done. And that outside investment was crucial.
“I feel like without the opportunity of the other investors, it would have never gotten done. Like, pretty much ever,” Halliday said. “Just by how I understand how things get done in the city, it would have taken much, much longer and a lot more funding and a lot more meetings and a lot more red tape that would have needed to be crossed for Boston Public Schools and [the city] to actually get this thing done.”
And then, of course, there’s those who are excited to see an NWSL team in Franklin Park.
“We’re making a generational investment for the student-athletes who will forever remember setting new state records here, for the community members who live and walk everyday in the park here and for the world-class female athletes who get to dream here,” Jennifer Epstein, controlling manager of Boston Legacy, said in April.
What comes next
Boston Legacy FC won’t play in White Stadium until 2027 at the earliest. In the meantime, they’ll play at Gillette Stadium for their inaugural season next year, a stadium owned by the Kraft Group.
This puts the team in an awkward position to say the least: they’ve worked closely with the Wu administration on the White Stadium development, but will essentially be paying rent to the family of an opposing candidate who doesn’t want them in Franklin Park.
Meanwhile, the Krafts are trying to build their own stadium in Everett to host Major League Soccer’s New England Revolution, an effort that has become another focal point in this year’s race.
There have been some who have suggested that Boston Legacy could play at the new stadium as well, though Epstein has pushed back on that idea.
Kraft, for his part, said that he doesn’t have anything to do with that part of his family’s business.
“In talking about the women’s professional team, I’m all for it finding a great place to play,” Kraft said. “And I would support that in the city of Boston. Obviously, not at White Stadium.”
Kraft believes that money being set aside for the stadium could go to other needed improvements in the city, like helping seniors pay real estate taxes or building more housing, especially at a time when just about everyone’s belt is getting tighter.
“My number-one issue that’s most important to me is the taxpayers of Boston,” Kraft said. “And at a time when, no matter who the mayor is, we’re coming to some pretty challenging fiscal times.”
But it’s unclear whether Kraft’s stance on the stadium is helping him. Recent polling showed him trailing Wu by 30 points.
Ultimately, what happens next may be up to folks like Priscilla Andrade, who lives in a neighborhood abutting Franklin Park.
Andrade voted for Wu in 2021 but also has had major doubts about the project. She’s critical of what she views as a less-than-transparent process, though Wu says the renovation has had the most public conversation about any public building project she’s seen in her 15 years in city government.
“I think we are a better city. ... The city has benefitted from [Wu’s] leadership,” Andrade said. “I think that’s what makes it most challenging. ‘Cause it feels so counter to what we’ve seen so far — what I’ve seen and perceived.”
But despite her objections, she hopes that both Wu and Kraft recognize that White Stadium is an important — and complex — issue.
“When I think about my own vote ... it’s not the single issue, but it does color my understanding of both candidates,” Andrade said. “It makes me see parts of them that maybe I didn’t see before.”
