New England Revolution not getting new stadium for now but fans aren't giving up
EVERETT - It's back to the drawing board for the New England Revolution after plans for a new soccer stadium in Everett didn't get the initial approval needed by state lawmakers.
Proposal for 25,000-seat soccer stadium
The Kraft Group wanted to turn a blighted, closed down power plant in Everett into a brand new 25,000 seat soccer stadium for the New England Revolution.
"The state, they say no to everything," said Bobby Carr, a longtime Everett resident. "But I think it would be a good advantage to the city."
If you ask Everett residents if they want a new stadium in their backyard, you'll get mixed reactions.
"Now you add all of these people coming in, with all the extra traffic – that's my big, big issue," Mark Jagiello told WBZ-TV.
"There's a lot of soccer fans in Everett and it's close," Carr argued. "And I think it's a good idea."
Kraft Group "deeply disappointed"
The Kraft Group seems to be moving on, writing in a statement:
"This legislative session, our Commonwealth missed a vital opportunity to clean up a brownfields site for an environmental justice community, robbing the city of Everett and its community of the ability to remove a dilapidated and decommissioned power plant and remediate a site contaminated over the decades and replace it with a public park, water front access, and a privately funded soccer stadium - which was just one piece of this very significant project. We are grateful for the willingness of Senate President Spilka and Senator DiDomenico to advance this project and thank them for their commitment to doing the right thing for the Everett community, are deeply disappointed that the House would not take up this legislation on its own, and that the Legislature was unable to act on major legislation at the end of this session. This inaction on language that had no financial commitments from state or local government has halted the public process to determine the feasibility of this project before it could even begin and passing this legislation was strictly about allowing us to start the process of determining the viability of this project for Everett. Massachusetts' political landscape is one of the only places where creating opportunities in environmental justice communities and rehabilitation is dictated by the needs and bargaining of political leaders with outside influences and we had hoped for a different outcome for the citizens of Everett and environmental justice for that community."
It's the closest the organization has gotten to getting a new stadium. Some diehard Revs fans said they got their hopes up, only to be let down again.
Revs fans hopeful for new stadium in future
"It's very saddening," Jaydon Perez of The Rebellion fan group said. "When you're that close and you're getting so many renderings… it really does break your heart."
Other fans want a designated stadium but argue that perhaps Everett wasn't the best home for it – with just 75 parking spots in the proposal.
"Going all the way into the city and trying to find parking and all that kind of stuff seemed like it would be kind of hard," said John Bracewell, president of The Rebellion.
Back to Foxboro we go, but Revs fans are hopeful.
"It's sad that it's not going to be here, not going to be close to the city, but hopefully they find something that works for everybody in the long run," Perez said.