Deals also reached for new hotels and commuter rail near the stadium
After years of negotiation with the City of Boston, the New England Revolution’s ownership group plans to build a $500 million soccer-specific stadium on a waterfront site on Boston’s northern border in Everett, Mass.
The Kraft Group mitigation deals for the 24,000-seat stadium announced Dec. 31 includes a Boston deal for nearly $48 million over 15 years, Boston Mayor Wu announced. The deal addresses concerns about potential disruption from traffic, noise and other daily impacts of crowds coming for games and other events at the stadium.
Permitting for the stadium is expected to take 12 to 18 months, followed by three years to remove the defunct Mystic Generating Station before the stadium is constructed.
Separately, the city of Everett expects to receive nearly $100 million in direct payments, infrastructure investments and other community sources, not including about $100 million for the site’s environmental cleanup from the Kraft group, media reports say.
“Under the agreements, we will undertake significant environmental remediation and demolition of the long‑vacant powerplant, invest in extensive traffic and transportation improvements, and deliver substantial community benefits, including millions of dollars towards infrastructure improvements,” a Kraft Group statement says. “The project will open the waterfront with the creation of a new public park, strengthen pedestrian and bicycle connectivity, and enhance access to public transit.”
The Kraft Group says the agreement marks “an important milestone in our effort to transform a long‑neglected industrial site along the Mystic River into a vibrant, publicly accessible waterfront destination and the future home of the New England Revolution.”
To help with transportation and traffic mitigation, the nearly $200 million Kraft agreements also includes $17.5 million earmarked for building a new headhouse at the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority Assembly Row commuter rail station on the Orange Line in Somerville, pending permits and approvals, says a City of Everett press release. The headhouse will also connect to the Massachusetts Dept. of Transportation’s $62.3 million Mystic River bicycle pedestrian bridge project, which links Somerville and Everett, media reports say. The bridge project is in design and set for completion by 2029.
Outgoing Everett Mayor DeMaria has voiced support for the project, part of transformative work planned for the city. In his final hours as mayor, DeMaria signed an agreement with Wynn Resorts paving the way for development of up to two new third-party hotels on Wynn Resorts-owned property near the proposed stadium site.
The deal signed Jan. 5, part of a new casino district expansion, will bring “significant economic and transportation benefits to the City of Everett,” a city press release says. Incoming Mayor Robert Van Campen also voiced support for the deal at his first press conference.
Further, it will generate revenue from taxes on property, hotel rooms and meals, the city says. It does not include gaming and is not related to the 2013 host community agreement.
The two hotels are expected to have 800 new rooms in buildings developed on a 4.6 acre-site owned by Wynn across from the Encore Boston Harbor Casino, media reports say. After review by the Everett Planning Board, construction could begin in spring with the hotels opening in 2028, the city said.
Wynn’s new deal with DeMaria includes $15 million for transportation improvements including expanded and dedicated bus lines and $25 million for a commuter rail stop.
NOTEWORTHY: In other soccer-related news, the Massachusetts Attorney General Justin Polk wrote in an eight-page letter sent Dec. 10 to the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority that agency officials violated state bidding laws in their work to improve the Foxboro commuter rail station before the 2026 World Cup .
Despite the violation, the Polk’s office does not plan to take legal action against the project.
“The Office of the Attorney General recognizes the MBTA’s argument that the public interest would be best served by allowing the change order to stand and the work on the project to continue,” the letter states.
Any appeal would need to be directed to the state Superior Court.
