The Big Picture

Release Date: Thursday, December 1st 2011

The DC City Council canceled a hearing last month that many Downtown stakeholders were awaiting with bated breath. The hearing, to consider a bill that would require Mayor Vincent Gray to issue rules governing additional displays on the Verizon Center’s (601 F Street) exterior façade, has yet to be rescheduled. At issue is Monumental Sports and Entertainment’s plan to add five new digital and four new static displays—with lights—on the F, 6th and 7th Street sides of the arena and near the Gallery Place Metrorail. Three static displays are currently at 7th and G Streets and 6th and F Streets.

Monumental Sports and Entertainment, which owns the Washington Wizards, Capitals and Mystics, holds the lease on the arena. It seeks to “enhance the entertainment experience” in the area and believes new digital and illuminated canvas displays on the building’s façade will further the neighborhood’s development trend and increase tax revenue. Beginning in January, the displays are expected to generate $9 million in new tax revenue for the city over the next four years, if approved.

Not everyone is happy, and more than a few residents have concerns about bounce back and glare from lights, the scale of the displays, how they’ll fit with the building’s architecture, and the additional crowds that will be drawn to the robust area. Randall Boe, Monumental Sports and Entertainment’s executive vice president, has met with community groups to explain the company’s intent and receive feedback.