Pawtucket would get pro soccer team, new stadium in $400 million development deal

PAWTUCKET, R.I. (WJAR) — State and city leaders on Monday announced the largest development deal in Pawtucket history, which would bring professional soccer to the city in a new stadium.

The Fortuitous Group proposes to spend $400 million to develop three sites downtown, with a soccer stadium, an indoor sports facility, and housing and office development. It’s the preferred plan of the city and state, which received bids from six different developers after the PawSox proposal to build a stadium downtown could not be negotiated.

The preferred plan calls for a 7,500-seat soccer stadium at the Tidewater site, which is across the river from the Apex site. It envisions an indoor sports facility, 200 units of housing, 100,000 square feet of retail and dining space, and 200,000 square feet of office space. The project expects cover three sites downtown, although the city still does not have title to two of the sites.

Of the $400 million investment, the state and city expect to pick up from $70 million to $90 million of the costs, with tax revenues expected to generate twice as much as the pay back costs.

McCoy Stadium is not part of this project, and Grebien says talks are continuing with interested parties for a solution for that property.

The state has sought uses for McCoy Stadium, which will become vacant when the Pawtucket Red Sox move to Worcester in 2021.

The Rhode Island Commerce Corp. received six proposals in April for economic development in Pawtucket.

Those proposals included two different groups wanting to bring in baseball teams, while two others want to build new soccer stadiums and repurpose McCoy and the area around it.

The remaining proposals were for a music destination and a family entertainment center.