June 19, 2003 [LINK]
Ex-Redskins join VBC
The Washington Post reports that two former Redskins football stars, Art Monk and Charles Mann, have joined the Virginia Baseball Club, the name of William Collins' prospective franchise ownership group. This inclusion of minorities as investment partners is an apparent public relations move, as the moment of decision on the sale of the Expos approaches. Meanwhile, the chairman of the D.C. Sports and Entertainment Commission, John Richardson, abruptly resigned, boding ill for Mayor Anthony Williams' determined campaign to bring the team inside the District of Columbia. The Commission had hired his law firm to handle a lawsuit, raising conflict-of-interest issues.
The Philadelphia Phillies' new ballpark, which is currently under construction, will be named "Citizens Bank Park" under the terms of a 25-year, $95 million contract. ($57.5 million will be paid for the naming rights per se.) The new ballpark is expected to be completed prior to the 2004 season, with an estimated cost of $346 million, and a capacity of 43,000 seats. Its design bears a number of similarities to Shibe Park, a.k.a. "Connie Mack Stadium." It is located close to Veterans Stadium (which no one will miss), and to Lincoln Financial Field, the almost-finished new home of the Eagles football team, and also to the First Union Center basketball/hockey arena, which will soon be renamed "Wachovia Center." And they say there's no competition in the banking industry anymore!