A new Austin MLS stadium at McKalla Place could be surrounded by trails and other amenities, according to a conceptual site plan released Tuesday.
Columbus Crew SC has been exploring a move to Austin, with officials from Precourt Sports Ventures looking to present a formal plan for a proposed stadium in the coming weeks. In March, the Austin City Council voted to study McKalla Place as the potential home of a new MLS stadium. The city-owned, 24-acre site could be developed to include a new stadium and surrounding amenities.
PSV has released a conceptual site plan for a stadium at McKalla Place. As detailed in the site plan, the stadium would include a canopy over the seating bowl–a feature that could protect fans from the heat–and be surrounded by walkways and trails, a performance area, a bicycle valet, and 1,000 parking spaces for cars. More from The Austin American-Statesman:
“We want this to resemble a traditional English soccer grounds,” PSV President Dave Greeley told the American-Statesman at a community engagement meeting last week. “We intend to have trails, a lot of trees and green space, an area people can use.”
The Precourt group, which showed City Council members the site plan before publicly announcing it, intends to have a stadium proposal for the 24-acre, city-owned property in the next two weeks. The city staff is working on a full vetting of McKalla Place, and that report is due by June 1.
PSV officials have said they want to some kind of agreement with the city before council takes its summer break in July.
It was first revealed last October that Crew investor-operator Anthony Precourt was exploring a move of the club to Austin, where a new stadium would need to be constructed to accommodate the club. Discussions about a potential move have been unfolding over the last several months, but no formal relocation plans have been finalized to this point.
The earliest the Crew would relocate from Columbus to Austin is the 2019 MLS season. If that were to happen, the club would play home games at an existing venue in the area on a temporary basis until the construction of a new stadium is complete. The Crew has played home matches at MAPFRE Stadium since 1999.
Site concept courtesy Gensler.
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