Washington Capitals, Wizards arena proposal highlights Gov. Youngkin’s divided Virginia government

WASHINGTON — The proposal to move the NHL’s Washington Capitals and the NBA’s Washington Wizards out of Washington has hit a snag in Virginia’s General Assembly.

State Sen. Louise Lucas, chair of the state Senate Finance and Appropriations Committee, said Saturday she believed Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s proposal to move the sports teams out of Washington and into Alexandria, Virginia, was “not ready for prime time.”

Lucas doubled down on that sentiment Monday, when her committee wrapped up work on bills heading to their counterparts in the House of Delegates for approval and the Senate bill that laid out a $2 billion plan to move the two teams was not one of them.

“This is what happens when Executive Branch doesn’t operate in good faith and doesn’t have respect for the Legislative Branch,” Lucas, a Democrat, said on X.

In December, Youngkin and Ted Leonsis, the CEO of Monumental Sports & Entertainment, which has the majority stake in the Wizards and the Capitals, announced their plan to create a multibillion dollar entertainment district that would be home to the two teams.

The Wizards and the Capitals play at Washington’s Capital One Arena, which Monumental also owns. The plan needs approval from the Virginia Legislature, as well as the Alexandria City Council.

Among Lucas’ concerns: the project’s financing. The proposal would use bonds backed by the Commonwealth of Virginia and the city of Alexandria to finance a significant part of the project. That could stick Virginia taxpayers with the bill if the venture is not as successful as Youngkin and Leonsis hope it will be.

Asked whether the deal is dead, Lucas told reporters in Richmond on Monday: “As far as I’m concerned.”

Youngkin and officials at Monumental