By FRANCO PANIZO
David Beckham’s quest to land a site for a potential soccer-specific stadium in Miami might take him to a place directly on water.
According to a report from the Miami Herald, Beckham is considering building a 25,000-seat stadium for a potential MLS Franchise at PortMiami and has already had his ownership group approach Miami-Dade County to see how feasible it would be to have an expandable stadium built there.
The feedback thus far has not been negative.
“They kind of elevated this site,” deputy mayor Chip Iglesias told the Herald. “We said yes, we’d take a look at it.”
Any stadium built in Miami would be fully funded by Beckham and the rest of the ownership group, which might include Bolivian billionaire Marcelo Claure and NBA superstar LeBron James. Miami-Dade County could, however, lease the owned land at the port.
A 25-year plan for the debt-laden port envisions its southwest corner (the far end on the left in the photo above) receiving several upgrades through commercial development in order to bring in revenue. The plan could include building a hotel, an office complex and a harbor for mega-yachts that would face downtown’s Bayside Marketplace.
Talks of a stadium at the port are in the early stages, but there are some concerns over parking and traffic at the approximate 25 acres that could be available on the Dodge Island site.
While Beckham’s ownership group is keen on PortMiami, it reportedly also has around 30 other sites it is considering.
Beckham, who reportedly has until the end of the year to claim his discounted expansion rate of $25 million, has visited Miami in recent months to explore potential areas to construct a soccer-specific stadium for an expansion franchise. It seems all but likely that Miami would start out at a temporary stadium, like Marlins Park or FIU Stadium, before building and moving into a permanent home.
Beckham has said he would like his team to start playing in 2016, a year after Orlando City SC begins play in MLS.
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