Plan in Works For Surface Parking Lots

D.C. Officials Worried About Garage Project

District officials fear that a proposal to build condominiums, shops and parking garages next to the city's new baseball stadium will fall through and have begun developing an alternative plan that relies heavily on surface-level parking lots.

Developer Herbert S. Miller had hoped to begin work on his $300 million mixed-use development on city-owned land this week. But negotiations between him and city officials have bogged down because of financing complications.

Although talks with Miller are scheduled to resume today, city leaders said yesterday they are uncertain whether the sides will resolve two outstanding issues: whether Miller's plan violates the terms of a $611 million stadium cost cap set by the D.C. Council and who would pay for any cost overruns.

"There's a long way to go, and time is ticking," said D.C. Council member Jack Evans (D-Ward 2), who has been involved in the negotiations. "Nobody is ready to put it to bed. We're trying to see if there's a way to make it work out."

D.C. Chief Financial Officer Natwar M. Gandhi has expressed concern that the council's cost cap legislation prohibits the city from putting money it receives from development rights on stadium land back into the ballpark project. Under Miller's plan, the money he would pay the city would help fund the garages.

Miller remained confident yesterday that his project will go forward.

"We've got our money. We've got our partners. We've got our plans. We're ready to build," Miller said. "And we anticipate the city will execute the land disposition agreement shortly. . . . The city has got to move. Time is of the essence."

Miller's plan to construct two 13-story towers is a cornerstone of Mayor Anthony A. Williams's pledge that the stadium, near South Capitol Street and the Navy Yard, will help redevelop the neglected Anacostia River waterfront and bring tax revenue to the city. The project has been endorsed by the D.C. Council and the city's Zoning Commission.

However, Washington Nationals principal owner Theodore N. Lerner has objected, arguing that mixed-use development is too expensive and time-consuming to build. Lerner representatives have lobbied the city to build two free-standing garages to provide the 1,225 parking spots required in the stadium agreement.

At a meeting of the D.C. Sports and Entertainment Commission yesterday, Chairman Mark H. Tuohey said he expects officials to reach a decision on Miller's plan within the next two weeks. Gandhi has asked the city's attorney general to rule on whether the project would violate the stadium cost cap. That office had not ruled as of yesterday.

City leaders have been discussing what to do if Miller's plan falls through. The sports commission has explored the possibility of paving over the five-acre plot north of the stadium to provide surface level lots for the scheduled opening of the stadium in April 2008. A temporary one-level garage might be included to reach the required number of parking spaces. Under that plan, additional development could be built in the future by Miller or another developer.

Lerner representatives declined to comment yesterday.

In addition to development outside the stadium, city officials and the Nationals owners have been negotiating the terms of how the ballpark will look inside.

The sports commission has agreed to the team's request to improve the 66 luxury suites by adding a restroom to each and installing windows that can be opened during nice weather.

Allen Y. Lew, the commission's chief executive, said the changes will cost an additional $1.8 million. The money will come from the team's $5 million contingency, which was included in the council-approved stadium budget.

Lew said stadium construction is proceeding on schedule. Workers have driven 1,800 concrete piles into the ground and expect to begin planting steel beams next month, a critical step, Lew said.