History
Financed by the George Robert White fund, the cost was originally estimated to be between $350,000 to $450,000. However, the final amount ballooned to $1,000,000, a figure that city clerk and former acting mayor John Hynes blamed on Mayor James Michael Curley. [2] [3]
Twice postponed due to weather, the opening football games on October 1, 1949 were:
In 1970, a proposal was made to enlarge the stadium to 50,000 seats for a potential home for the New England Patriots. [4] By the 1980s, White Stadium had deteriorated as maintenance was neglected and improvements were deferred. [5] The scoreboard had been rendered unusable due to vandalism and the locker rooms lacked working showers and toilets. [6]
A $45 million renovation and expansion was planned, starting in 2013. The project was shelved by Mayor Marty Walsh, citing budget concerns. [7]
Planned renovation
In 2023, the city of Boston announced that the stadium would undergo a $30 million renovation to prepare for the arrival of Boston Legacy FC, set to start play in the National Women's Soccer League in 2026. The renovation would include additional seats to bring capacity to 11,000 in order to meet the league's minimum standards. [8] The renovation would be a public-private partnership. [9] Boston Mayor Michelle Wu has been a proponent of the planned renovation. [10] [11]
Some neighborhood organizations and the Emerald Necklace Conservancy have opposed the renovation plan, and the latter has filed litigation against it. [9]
The planned renovation of the satdium has emerged as a significant item of debate in the 2025 Boston mayoral election. One of Wu's challenger Josh Kraft's top criticisms of her is the planned renovation she had championed, with Kraft characterizing it as expensive as well as unpopular with and detrimental to communities living near the stadium. [9] [12] Wu has countered by refuting Kraft's allegations of rising costs for the project, and alleging that Kraft has a conflict of interest against the stadium due to his family's company, the Kraft Group, planning to build a privately-owned soccer stadium in the neighboring city of Everett for their New England Revolution men's team (since a renovated White Stadium could compete with the Kraft's planned soccer stadium for event bookings). [9] [12]
Other events
A rally by the Black Panther Party was held in the park on July 27, 1969 at 2 p.m. [13]
Uptown in the Park, a three part series of funk/soul and jazz concerts to benefit Elma Lewis School of Fine Arts, was held in the park in 1974. On July 7, Sly and the Family Stone along with Tower of Power, Hues Corporation, Donald Byrd and the Blackbyrds, and Richard Pryor performed. Funkadelic performed on August 25 along with The Voices of East Harlem, The Isley Brothers, Gil Scott-Heron, Mandrill, and Bar-Kays. A September 2 concert featuring the Ohio Players, Staple Singers, Bobbi Humphrey, and Bobby Womack was canceled . [14] [15] [16]
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