D.C. Baseball Stadium Cost Could Exceed $700 Million

But Gandhi's new estimates also include $40 million in contingencies, twice the $20 million extra in contingencies that Major League Baseball recently agreed to contribute to the project during ongoing stadium lease negotiations, the source said.

Council member David A. Catania (I-At Large), who opposes the project, said yesterday that he intends to introduce two stadium-related emergency bills at the council's legislative meeting today, including one that would cap the cost of the project at $535 million.

In recent weeks, Catania and others had calculated that the projected price had reached well over $600 million because city officials removed $55 million of infrastructure costs and $54 million in bond financing fees from the original budget to deal with escalating stadium costs.

Because the city is financing the construction bonds with other revenue, it might have to pay the infrastructure costs with city money in the future, Catania said.

The new project estimates come as the city is close to finalizing a stadium lease with baseball. City officials have said they hope to complete the lease deal and send it to the council by Friday. Council members said last week that baseball's recent concessions show progress.

The lease is critical because until it is completed, city finance officials will not issue construction bonds and Commissioner of Baseball Bud Selig has said he will not sell the Nationals.

Along with the $20 million payment to cover rising construction costs, baseball has agreed to give the District a letter of credit that would guarantee the Nationals' rent payment for one or two seasons in case of a terrorist attack or players' strike.

In return, the city has agreed to give baseball one-third of parking revenue generated by a new stadium on non-game days, city officials said yesterday.

Over the course of the stadium's life, expected to be 30 to 40 years, baseball would get back its $20 million, according to sources familiar with the lease negotiations.

City planners say they anticipate people parking in the stadium year-round because they are working with private developers to create a nearby entertainment district, featuring shops, restaurants, residential units and office space.

The details of the parking revenue split have not been finalized because baseball's negotiators are concerned that the stadium parking lots will not produce as much revenue as anticipated on non-game days, sources with knowledge of the stadium discussion said.

"The problem is, there's uncertainty there," Evans said. "It's possible no one would park in those lots for years. Even then, every one of the buildings [in an entertainment district] would have a parking garage."