Soccer stadium still moving forward after protest halts Railyards financing deal, city says
In June, a group of residents in the Railyards submitted opposition letters over the city's financing agreement for the project. The city council approved a special taxing district that will allocate approximately $92 million toward building public infrastructure like roadways, pedestrian bike lanes, and traffic lights in the area around the new soccer stadium.
Under state law, if half of the people who live in the district protest it, it must be put on hold for at least a year.
On Monday, the residents announced a lawsuit, saying the city had yet to count the letters.
We then reached out to the city, which confirmed that there were enough letters to halt the expansion of the special taxing district, but Mayor Kevin McCarty says the city council is still planning to move forward with the development using other means.
"We are building alternative pathways – which will not impact the General Fund to support the project," McCarty said in a statement after the lawsuit was announced. "City council has already unanimously approved the railyards infrastructure, and developers are free to move forward with construction."
The residents have been arguing that more affordable housing is needed in the Railyards.
"The City has failed railyard residents – and the residents of Sacramento – by not counting these protests. It was their legal obligation to count the protests on June 24th. It's been 20 days since the signed protests were submitted," said Sacramento resident Alejandro Rayburn. "Affordable housing is one of the most urgent issues the city must address. It is shameful for the city to try to avoid this issue by ignoring residents' voices."
Unite Here Local 49 issued a statement in support of the residents that said:
"Local 49 congratulates the Railyards residents on the city's recognition that a majority of them successfully protested the Railyards financing deal with its shamefully low 6% affordable housing on a project receiving $92 million or more in taxpayer funds. We hope the developers and City will now listen to demands for more affordable housing, a grocery store, displacement protections, and more and bring back a deal that is good for ordinary people, not just a place for people who can afford luxury apartments."
Mayor McCarty and Republic FC both said that construction on the new stadium is expected to start soon.
"Now that the city has clarified the path forward, we're advancing our plans to build a transformational stadium and neighborhood that Sacramento needs and wants. Our work on the stadium has never stopped and we look forward to beginning construction very soon," said Todd Dunivant, president and GM of Republic FC.
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