Dec 17, 2004  |  By: LOU CHIBBARO JR.  | COMMENTS     

Six gay businesses slated to be displaced by a Southeast D.C. waterfront baseball stadium might have been saved at the bell Tuesday night when D.C. Council Chair Linda Cropp (D-At-Large) stunned her colleagues by pushing through a surprise amendment.

Baseball supporters say Cropp’s amendment, which requires private financing for half the cost of the new stadium, could wreck Mayor Anthony Williams’ stadium deal and end the city’s hope of obtaining a baseball team. Cropp’s amendment passed by a 10 to 3 vote after she threatened to vote “no” on the overall bill authorizing city funding for the stadium.

A no vote by Cropp would have killed the stadium deal. The Council voted 7-6 to approve the stadium financing proposal with Cropp’s amendment. Williams said he would try to persuade baseball owners to accept the 50 percent financing requirement, but was uncertain of the outcome.

Baseball officials issued a statement Wednesday calling the council’s action “unacceptable and inconsistent with the deal signed by the city,” according to Reuters.

Major League Baseball indicated it would look for other host cities, but would wait until the agreement with the District expires on Dec. 31.

Bob Siegel, owner of the buildings in which five of the six gay clubs are located organized an aggressive campaign opposing the stadium deal through ads in the gay press and posters and fliers in areas near gay bars and clubs.

Similar to the first Council vote on the stadium proposal two weeks ago, no Council members discussed the issue of the displacement of both gay and non-gay businesses in the stadium zone during the Council debate Tuesday.

Club owners say zoning restrictions would most likely prevent them from reopening in another location if the stadium deal is approved because they feature adult oriented entertainment such as male nude dancing.