Opponents and supporters concerned over the redevelopment of Boston’s White Stadium made separate appearances Wednesday, one an icy morning rally against the backdrop of noisy construction equipment in Franklin Park, the other, a virtual, afternoon gathering.
The $200 million project has drawn opposition from several community groups who say it represents an overly hefty price tag to Boston taxpayers as well as a problematic pattern of turning public spaces into quasi-public, or wholly private ones. The city, is expected to pay half of cost.
The project has also become an early point of political focus in the still-nascent 2025 Boston mayoral race, wherein Mayor Michelle Wu seeks re-election against Josh Kraft, son of billionaire Patriots owner Robert Kraft. The candidate repeated his call for Wu to pause the project as a state court case against the plan advances to trial next month.
“This is a historic park and part of this community for generations,” said Kraft at Wednesday morning’s rally. “March 18th is a court date [and] for me personally, it makes sense to wait until the 18th and see what the judicial process holds.”
Asked whether the call to pause should be honored, Wu pointed to a judge’s denial of a temporary injunction against the plan nearly one year ago.
“We got a decision from the court many months ago at this point that was very clear that this case was extremely unlikely to succeed on the merits and outlined, one by one by one, how the claims did not fit with what the laws and current legal precedents say,” said the mayor.
Wu said with a leased signed, an escrow account between the city and the forthcoming Boston Unity Partners soccer team tenants fully funded, it would be “irresponsible to break a legal lease,” adding that Boston “cannot ask students in our schools to wait yet again after decades and decades of broken promises that this project would get done.”
About two dozen opponents with the Franklin Park Defenders group attended the morning rally, blasting Mayor Wu and lamenting the beginning of demolition on the stadium and the downing of trees in the area.
“This is all about a capitalist venture to make huge amounts of money to steal our park,” said Steve Kirschbaum, a retired executive with the Boston School Bus Drivers’ Union. “This belongs to the people, not to corporate profits. We should say ‘no’ and shame on Mayor Wu,” he said to boos and shouts of “Shame!”
“Mayor Michelle Wu has unilaterally chosen to destroy dozens of mature trees as part of her demolition of White Stadium, signifying the private takeover of public lands,” said Melissa Hamel, a member of the Defenders and one of the plaintiffs in the legal complaint against the redevelopment plan. “We, the Franklin Park Defenders, deem this to be a reckless, irresponsible and wrongful act.”
Hours later, supporters of the new stadium rallied virtually to express support for the redevelopment and Mayor Wu.
“Franklin Park Coalition believes a well-maintained White Stadium will be an asset to the Franklin Park community,” said Rickie Thompson, president of the Franklin Park Coalition, the non-profit that leads community engagement in the city’s largest green space. Thompson applauded months of engagement with both the Wu administration and Boston Unity Soccer Partners, the city’s forthcoming professional women’s soccer team, and said the redevelopment still requires community input.
“We’ll still advocate for park users to continue to push for comprehensive traffic management for all large events…We will press both newly formed partners to meet their commitment of 50% minority businesses, contractors and employees,” Thompson said. “We will also participate in the implementation of the Stadium Advisory Group to ensure the promises are kept and smooth effective operation of this facility. So, we are looking forward to this project moving on and being a real asset to the community, something that everybody can use, especially the Boston student athletes.”
Thompson was joined by a dozen Boston residents, including State Rep. Samantha Montaño, who welcomed the redevelopment as a way to revive the long-dilapidated facility and praised the mayor for taking action.
“I’ve seen so many projects in my neighborhood that would help lower the cost of housing…get told no because of lack of political will,” she said. “I think that the mayor choosing to stand up for this project is incredibly strong of her and further reflects her commitment to our youth. I think it’s especially concerning that Mr. Kraft, who is campaigning on building more housing, has inserted himself into a project that predates his time in Boston.”
The Suffolk Superior Court trial regarding the future of the plan is set for next month.
