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10 Years Later, FedEx Field Is Still Receiving Mixed Reviews
"It's the same as it was 10 years ago," said Theresa Dudley, a civic activist who opposed the stadium. "On some level, it's worse. . . . Landover Mall is closed, and the traffic is worse now."
Former County Council member Marvin Wilson said that with only 10 home games a year, traffic is not a year-round issue.
  Theresa Dudley, a civic activist who opposed the stadium, said she has been disappointed by its impact on the community. "On some level, it's worse. . . . Landover Mall is closed, and the traffic is worse now," she said. (By Lucian Perkins -- The Washington Post) |
Meanwhile, the county has a multimillion-dollar community athletic center, the Sports & Learning Complex, adjoining the stadium, which provides a recreational outlet for residents throughout the year. On any given day, the center is packed with swimmers, joggers, youngsters taking gymnastics classes and others.
Cooke contributed $3 million toward the $40 million center.
"Some of those who fought [the stadium] are now over at the facility with walkers," Wilson said, referring to the large number of senior citizens who use the center.
Residents of the area receive a 25 percent discount and advance registration for programs.
But Dudley said she is skeptical about how many in the area can afford to use the facility. "There is no shuttle to take them up there," she said. "And many of the programs are geared toward the affluent crowd of people, where people pay $80 for gymnastics classes."
Bill Sheehan, general manager of the center, disagreed. Many residents of the surrounding communities have benefited from the center and are taking advantage of its programs, he said. For example, eight members of the center's 56-member competitive gymnastics team are from the surrounding area, and 30 percent of the center's 15,000 fitness members live there.
"We're playing a big role in the community," Sheehan said.
Dawkins said many of the people who live near the stadium just wanted a recreation center where youngsters could go for free. "They didn't want some lavish recreation center that cost $30 to $40 million," he said. "You could have built a rec center for a whole lot of areas."
Cooke also started an endowment of $1.5 million for scholarships and other educational programs for youths who live in the impacted area. Dennis Brownlee, president of the LEARN Foundation, said the board has awarded 755 scholarships, totaling $414,000, since 1996. Six grants, totaling $30,000, also have been awarded.
Dawkins said he remains upset because he believes the county reneged on a 1995 pledge to dedicate stadium tax revenue to the surrounding communities.
Last year, a council member who represents the area tried to make up for it by introducing a bill to set up a special fund. Ten percent of admission and amusement taxes on Redskins and concert tickets, which go in the county's general fund, would have been diverted to the fund.
The bill never made it out of committee because it didn't have broad-based support. The council instead approved a measure that allocates $500,000 a year through 2011 to finance grants to community-based agencies in the area. The funds are subject to availability.
"Give the people what you said you were going to give them, because the people are the ones who are taking the hit," Dawkins said.
