Boston’s White Stadium lawsuit goes to trial Tuesday, deciding destiny of $200M soccer plan

A lawsuit that seeks to cease the Metropolis of Boston’s public-private rehab of Franklin Park’s White Stadium for a brand new professional ladies’s soccer crew goes to trial Tuesday in Suffolk Superior Court docket, the place the destiny of the $200 million proposal will probably be determined.

On the trial, plaintiffs, consisting of the Emerald Necklace Conservancy and a contingent of 20 park neighbors, will attempt to show that the use proposed by Boston Unity Soccer Companions, the for-profit group behind the brand new professional crew, in partnership with the Metropolis of Boston, constitutes an unlawful privatization of public belief land.

“For the last year, Franklin Park’s neighbors have been standing up for environmental justice in our public park,” Jean McGuire, a plaintiff and previous civil rights chief and Faculty Committee member, stated in a press release.

“I’m already heartbroken just thinking about the trees that have been cut down — we have to protect public spaces,” McGuire stated. “If this massive redevelopment project is allowed to go forward, our communities will pay the price. This is the public’s park, and we’re grateful to finally have our day in court to defend it.”

The Metropolis of Boston and Boston Unity Soccer Companions, named as defendants, will search to dispute the lawsuit’s claims, which a Suffolk Superior Court docket choose rejected final yr when denying the plaintiffs’ movement for a preliminary injunction.

Mayor Michelle Wu has denied the privatization declare, pointing to a lease settlement that sees the town preserve possession of the 76-year–previous White Stadium, which the Nationwide Girls’s Soccer League growth crew will share use of with Boston Public Colleges.

“A renovated White Stadium will be open for BPS students, coaches and the public, more than 345 days per year, generally 15 hours per day,” a Wu spokesperson stated in a press release. “Although we have urged ENC for months to abandon their lawsuit and join our effort, we look forward to clearing the way for the renovation to proceed.

“After 40 years of broken promises and two years of community meeting, kids have waited long enough.”

Boston Unity Soccer Companions, in a press release, additionally denied its proposed use would privatize the stadium, saying that it could be a tenant below a metropolis lease, which was signed by each events this previous December.

“As Boston Unity Soccer Partners continues our long-overdue revitalization of White Stadium, we look forward to the resolution of all legal claims, as the plaintiffs’ allegations are not supported legally or factually, nor are their claims supported by legal precedent,” Boston Unity stated.

“Our team is thrilled to bring professional women’s soccer to Boston and to collaborate with the City of Boston on enriching the community through our joint renovation of a beloved neighborhood landmark.”

The for-profit group went on to bash the “plaintiffs’ media campaign,” which it stated has “misrepresented the facts, leading to public misconception of what, exactly, this project would entail.”

The brand new ladies’s crew is ready to take the pitch in March 2026.

Boston Globe CEO Linda Pizzuti Henry, spouse of the billionaire Purple Sox proprietor John Henry, is an investor however is working to again out of the deal. The funding group is led by Jennifer Epstein, controlling supervisor of the crew and daughter of Boston Celtics co-owner Robert Epstein.

The plaintiffs have stated they assist renovation of the dilapidated stadium, however have advocated for a pared-down rehab that might see it preserved as a high-school-only facility.

The Emerald Necklace Conservancy commissioned a report that discovered such a smaller-scale renovation for BPS student-athletes may very well be performed at a “fraction” of what the town’s public-private plan is projected to value.

“Building a massive new stadium for the benefit of private investors, and shutting out the public on dozens of warm-weather game, practice and event days, is not the right plan for Franklin Park or our communities,” Renee Stacy Welch, a plaintiff who lives in Jamaica Plain, stated in a press release.

Melissa Hamel, one other Jamaica Plain plaintiff, insists that “there is still time for a better solution: a fully public renovation of White Stadium that prioritizes public school and parks use, and avoids the many flaws of the pro soccer proposal.”

The town disagrees. The mayor has argued {that a} personal accomplice will enable for the required repairs and ongoing upkeep after a long time of neglect left the stadium dilapidated and on the verge of being unusable for BPS student-athletes.

Mayor Wu has additionally disputed the plaintiffs’ assertions that there’s widespread opposition to the mission, which sees metropolis taxpayers on the hook for half the prices, at roughly $100 million and counting, as a result of potential additional value overruns.

Wu has cited assist from BPS mother and father, college students and coaches, and a bunch of supporters have fashioned a coalition in latest weeks to counter the vocal opposition.