New England Revolution

Mass. lawmakers failed to pass bill that would have advanced Revolution’s stadium bid in Everett

State Senator Sal DiDomenico, a proponent of the project, said afterward that he's "not giving up."

By Hayden Bird

August 1, 2024

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For Revolution fans who have looked hopefully for years to the potential construction of a Boston-area soccer-specific stadium, it appears the wait will go on.

As part of a 23-hour marathon effort to close out the Massachusetts legislature’s formal session — which lasted until 9:57 a.m. on Thursday, nearly 10 hours after the official midnight deadline on July 31 — state lawmakers were unable to come to agreement on a plethora of issues, including passage of a massive economic development bill.

Within the sprawling bill was a specific section that would have removed the specific “Designated Port Area” from a 43-acre parcel of land located at 173 Alford St in Everett, the site of a decommissioned power plant (currently owned by Wynn Resorts). Had the DPA been removed, it would have cleared a path for the Kraft Group-owned soccer team to begin pursuing the possible building of a 25,000-seater stadium along the waterfront.

Despite being included in a Senate version of the bill (which was passed in July), the House balked, and the ensuing conference committee was unable to reconcile the two versions prior to the close of formal session.

The economic development bill was far from the only piece of legislation that was left dead in the water by lawmakers, who disagreed on a range of issues in a protracted final effort of the session.

But with the failure of the economic development bill’s passage, it leaves the Revolution’s latest stadium effort on uncertain ground.

Technically, the stadium language could be refiled as a standalone bill (which it originally was at the beginning of the year). But with formal session ended, it would only take opposition from a single lawmaker to block the entire bill (per the rules of informal session).

As it appeared that there was opposition to the proposed stadium emanating from Boston — with representatives of TD Garden and Fenway Park in opposition to another potential local concert venue — the road to passage via informal session would likely be a rocky one.

Still, the author of the original 2024 Everett stadium bill isn’t giving up.

State Senator Sal DiDomenico (whose constituency includes Everett), offered a brief comment following the conclusion of formal session on Thursday.

“I’m committed to continuing to try to find a way to a path forward on this, and in the next few days, we will examine that process and that path,” Sen. DiDomenico said, per Chris Lisinski of State House News Service. “I’m not giving up. I’m committed, and I think it’s the right thing for my community, the right thing for my region.”