The Seattle City Council approved a resolution today to advance plans to redevelop Memorial Stadium. The legislation, sponsored by Council President Debora Juarez (District 5), supports a public-private partnership between the City of Seattle, Seattle Public Schools, and the One Roof Partnership for the project.  

What’s the plan to redevelop Memorial Stadium?  

In May, the City of Seattle and Seattle Public Schools (which owns the stadium) announced plans to partner with the One Roof Partnership to redevelop the 76-year-old stadium. The One Roof Partnership is a group comprised of the Seattle Kraken, Oak View Group, and the One Roof Foundation.  

Under that agreement, the One Roof Partnership plans to redevelop the stadium into a state-of-the-art venue that will focus on student needs, but also be a place for concerts, professional sports, and other community events. It will also be the operator of the stadium.  

While final plans are still under development, the project will preserve the stadium’s namesake Memorial Wall. That monument lists the names of 762 former Seattle Public Schools students who lost their life in World War II.  

The stadium redevelopment is scheduled to be completed in 2026, but no later than the end of 2027.  

What does this legislation do?  

The resolution affirms the City’s full support for Seattle Center to advance negotiations for a public-private partnership between the City of Seattle, Seattle Public Schools, and the One Roof Partnership to build and operate a new Memorial Stadium. It also:   

• Reaffirms the City’s previous funding commitments for the project, including its intent to work with the Mayor to identify an additional $19M in the City’s future budget discussions for a total of $40M in City funding for the project;   
• Requests the Mayor’s Office and Seattle Center propose legislation to implement the partnership; and  
• Requests an equitable and inclusive process that engages students and the community about the projects.   

Final agreements to advance the project are expected to be considered by the Seattle School Board and the Seattle City Council in early 2024. 

Timeline of the redevelopment of Memorial Stadium 

Plans to redevelop Memorial Stadium have been underway for the past six years. Here’s a timeline of major events:  

• 2017: The City of Seattle and Seattle Public Schools sign a partnership agreement to redevelop the stadium.  
• 2021: A letter of intent is signed outlining the vision of replacing the stadium with a state-of-the-art multi-use facility.  
• 2022: A Memorandum of Agreement is signed.  
• 2022: Seattle votes approve Proposition 2, a Seattle Public Schools levy that included $66.5 million for the project.  
• 2023: Seattle City Council passes resolution establishing the City’s support for a vision of the project and a public-private partnership.  
• 2023: City of Seattle and Seattle Public Schools choose to partner with the One Roof Partnership to redevelop and operate the stadium.  
• 2023: (Now) Seattle City Council passes resolution to, among other things, support advancing the public-private partnership with One Roof Partnership and requesting legislation from the Mayor’s Office to implement the partnership.
• 2026: The aim is to complete the stadium redevelopment by 2026, but no later than the end of 2027.  

How will this be funded? 

The redevelopment will rely on a mix of private and public funding – the foundation of which comes from Seattle voters supporting Proposition 2 in 2022 with 79 percent of the vote.  

• $66.5 million comes from Proposition 2 funding 
• The City of Seattle has already approved $21 million for the project and plans to identify $19 million more by 2026.  
• Washington State is investing $4 million.  
• The One Roof Partnership will raise the rest of the funding.