D.C. Council member against Redskins’ return to city due to ‘offensive’ name

David Grosso, an at-large, independent D.C. Council member, released a statement Thursday saying he was against the idea of the Washington Redskins moving back into the city partly due to their nickname being “offensive.”

The statement was a reaction to Mayor Muriel Bowser’s call Wednesday for the team to someday return to a stadium in D.C. city limits.

“I am disappointed to hear that Mayor Bowser is trying to bring the NFL’s Washington Football Team back into the District of Columbia,” Grosso wrote. “Though I have been a lifetime fan of the team, I continue to be frustrated and offended by the team’s name and oppose any efforts for them to play in our city.”

In addition, Grosso called NFL stadiums “a waste of land and public resources.”

“A giant stadium that is used less than a dozen days per year takes up space that could be used for housing, parks, or other public or commercial facilities,” he wrote. “Even if the team pays for the construction costs of the stadium, there would still be millions of dollars that our government would have to pay for infrastructure, security, and more.”

Bowser, a Democrat, said Wednesday the Redskins being back in town would positively impact the capital’s bottom line.

“In the world capital, you invest in the arts,” she said. “You invest in the restaurants and a great nightlife scene and walkable, livable communities — and also in sport.”

The Redskins have played their home games at FedEx Field in Landover, Maryland since 1997. Their stadium is the ninth-oldest in the NFL, excluding two stadiums that teams will abandon in the near future. Before FedEx Field, the Redskins played at RFK Stadium in Washington.

Virginia politicians have also been vocal about wanting the team to build a stadium in that state. Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam said this month he thinks the Redskins will look to Loudoun County, Virginia when they want to move — not far from the team’s current headquarters in Ashburn.