Plans
disclosed
this
week
by
D.C.
government
officials
to
build
a
$400
million
baseball
stadium
on
the
Anacostia
River
waterfront
call
for
the
displacement
of
the
entire
Southeast
gay
nightclub
zone
stretching
from
O
Street
to
K
Street,
SE,
according
to
a
report
in
the
Washington
Post.
A
map
of
the
city’s
plans
for
the
stadium
location
published
in
Wednesday’s
Post
shows
that,
if
Major
League
Baseball
approves
D.C.
as
the
new
home
of
the
Montreal
Expos,
a
stadium
would
be
built
within
a
site
bounded
by
South
Capitol
Street
and
First
Streets,
SE
and
P
Street
and
N
Streets,
SE.
If
approved
by
the
D.C.
Council,
the
stadium
would
eliminate
the
O
Street,
SE,
strip
of
gay
clubs,
which
includes
the
nightclubs
Ziegfeld’s
and
Secrets,
the
Follies
Theater,
the
Glorious
Health
&
Amusements,
and
the
Club
Bath.
Also
slated
to
be
displaced
would
be
La
Cage
Aux
Follies
bar
and
nightclub,
which
closed
last
year
but
was
slated
to
reopen
under
new
owners
later
this
year.
The
site
map
published
by
the
Post
also
calls
for
the
removal
of
all
existing
structures
bounded
by
N
Street,
South
Capitol
Street,
K
Street,
and
First
Streets,
SE,
to
make
way
for
new
commercial
development
and
parking
facilities
associated
with
the
baseball
stadium.
If
approved
by
the
Council,
extending
the
site
to
this
area
would
result
in
the
displacement
of
the
popular
nightclub
Nation,
which
features
Velvet
Nation
every
Saturday
night,
and
the
gay
nightclubs
Wet
and
Edge,
which
are
located
at
Half
and
L
Streets,
SE.
“It’s
important
to
remember
that
there
has
been
no
decision
on
a
site
yet,”
said
Christopher
Bender,
a
spokesperson
for
Deputy
Mayor
Eric
Price,
who
is
coordinating
Mayor
Anthony
Williams’s
effort
to
bring
Major
League
Baseball
back
to
D.C.
“It’s
up
to
the
baseball
owners
and
the
team
owners
to
make
the
final
decision
on
a
site,”
he
said.
But
the
Post
reported
that
city
officials
as
well
as
key
members
of
the
Council
prefer
the
Southeast
waterfront
site
because
its
current
status
as
a
warehouse
zone
makes
it
the
easiest
to
convert
into
a
stadium-redevelopment
complex.
The
site
would
also
provide
dramatic
views
of
both
the
Anacostia
and
Potomac
Rivers
and
the
U.S.
Capitol
dome,
making
it
an
attractive
place
for
a
stadium,
officials
have
said.
Bender
and
D.C.
Council
member
Jack
Evans
(D-Ward
2),
who
has
been
among
the
lead
advocates
for
a
baseball
team
in
D.C.,
said
they
would
take
steps
to
insure
that
the
city
helps
in
the
relocation
of
existing
businesses,
including
gay
businesses,
in
the
path
of
the
new
baseball
complex.
Among
those
favoring
the
waterfront
site
is
D.C.
Councilmember
Sharon
Ambrose
(D-Ward
6),
whose
ward
would
be
home
to
the
stadium.
Asked
by
the
Post
to
describe
the
area
that
would
be
displaced
by
the
stadium,
Ambrose
made
no
mention
of
the
plethora
of
gay
nightclubs
and
bars.
“The
businesses
are
largely
industrial,”
Ambrose
told
the
Post,
“and
it
is
the
kind
of
use
that
we
would
like
to
move
farther
away
from
the
waterfront.”
Lou
Chibbaro
Jr.
can
be
reached
at
lchibbaro@washblade.com.
