MLS commissioner Don Garber, former soccer star David Beckham, and University of Miami president Donna Shalala are scheduled to walk into a bar meet later today to discuss a possible joint project to build a stadium for Beckham’s MLS expansion team and UM’s football team. Here’s how it would work, per the Miami Herald:
[Shalala] said she would favor a 40,000- to 44,000-seat venue, which would be larger than the 25,000- to 30,000-seat stadium MLS officials prefer but probably a size the league could live with. Shalala also happens to be a huge soccer fan. She is a member of the U.S. Soccer Federation board of directors…
UM would be willing to consider contributing toward construction costs, [a] source said.
That’s somewhat promising — if UM and Beckham’s team were both getting use out of the same stadium, they might actually be able to cobble together enough money to build the thing. Not that anyone knows how much money it would take to build the thing. Or where it would go — the leading site is the spot next to Marlins Park that is currently the site of public ballfields, that may not have enough room for a soccer stadium let alone a larger football stadium, and that could require tens of millions of dollars in tax breaks and discounted land. Also, Shalala is retiring as UM president next month, so while it would no doubt be nice for Beckham and Garber to get her blessing, it’s not like she’s going to be around for negotiations. But hey, sometimes you gotta take your momentum where you can find it.
lol what happen to Beckham’s “75,000-capacity complex” he was working on? RIP Orange Bowl
I have heard the incoming president has expressed a little reluctance at this idea, but as he still hasn’t officially taken the job, who knows? Also – there is not enough room for even a small stadium near the Marlins park; unless someone wanted to buy up land and move housing and businesses. Never say never, but it seems unlikely.
I still like the privately-owned boat yard near Miami airport that was brought up in the Miami Herald recently. It’s at the confluence of the Miami River and a man-made canal not far from a golf course. It’s within a few blocks of the public transport that serves the airport. That would be my vote. The land is private so the city wouldn’t even have to get involved.
There’s also a vacant lot in Overtown that was mentioned, but it’s not near anything best I can tell and that part of town is a hellhole.