Fuck this so hard. You can catch me dead before I spend a penny at anything associated with this.

Very happy that Columbus is getting an NWSL team. All it took was tens of millions of dollars of public money and signing over a badly needed public park in the city's poorest neighborhood to a group of billionaires.

I hate that the way the mayor and city council have gone about this will taint what should be an objective win for Columbus, and I am so sick of the Haslams' greed I could spit.

This is complete bullshit and fuck the Haslams for stealing this from Cleveland.

The Columbus Park Stealers? The Columbus Way? The Columbus Theft? The Columbus Grifters?

Hilarious how quickly those assurances from council disappeared… “We haven’t allocated any money”, “This is the beginning of a long process”, “We will hold them accountable”. Less than 18 hours later, they roll out the red carpet. Pathetic.

Won’t be seeing a dime of my money. On that I assure you.

This is such a textbook case of a city government giving billionaires a sweetheart deal at the expense of local residents

matternews.org/voices/local...

Takes more than just the mayor to tango, regrettably. "Some" council members indeed.

Amid controversy, Columbus council OKs funding for women’s soccer training facility COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) – Columbus City Council passed a funding plan to bring professional women’s soccer to Columbus. The Haslam Sports Group, owners of the Columbus Crew, is behind the push to use…

However the NWSL expansion to Columbus gets framed, it should include the fact that the city council approved giving $25M to Jimmy Haslam along with a public park in order to build a new training facility

www.nbc4i.com/news/local-n...

Regardless of the corrupt deal Ginther, Hardin, City Council and Franklin County Commissioners have made with the Haslam Sports Group for a NWSL franchise, you can still show your support for the residents of Franklinton and users of McCoy Park. Please share freely.

Cool, cool, good to know NWSL also loves to betray their values.

I emailed NWSL. I've attached my text below - feel free to steal whatever you'd like from it.

Also, NWSL really prides itself on its values - feel free to reference them in your email too (www.nwslsoccer.com/news/nwsl-me...)

A screenshot from city councilwoman Nancy day-achauer. There is a photo of McCoy Park. The text reads: I just emailed the NWSL and asked them to not select Columbus and explained why. You can too: nwslpsupport@nwslsoccer.com info@nwslsoccer.com Save McCoy Park

I'm doing this. I invite you to do so too.

Nwslpsupport@nwslsoccer.com info@nwslsoccer.com

And Shannon sitting there last night and blaming the business community and saying this isn’t “the Columbus Way” about had me crashing out.

It’s the definition of the Columbus Way! This is the Columbus Partnership at work, showing how quick we can rally for the rich.

“Mayor Ginther and councilmember Bankston said that the city needed to move fast…however; the NWSL expansion process now works on a rolling basis. Perhaps the rush comes from the investors themselves, who opted to submit a bid to the NWSL without first having a formal agreement from the city.”

It's cool that the NWSL is coming to Columbus, but last night the city voted to give a park that serves literally the poorest neighborhood in Columbus to the team's owners -- the odious Haslams -- as a practice facility. Shitty and unnecessary in every possible way.
bsky.app/profile/jreg...

This is absolutely disgusting

As an erstwhile Ohioan, #crew96 fan, and NWSL lover, I want Columbus to get a team. But...not like this. This is so shameful.

Local Politics: City Council votes today on plans to turn McCoy Park into an NWSL training facility – Matter News After spending years working with neighbors and promising improvements to benefit disabled residents, elected officials are prepared to give away a 28-acre park in the poorest corner of the city for t...

Columbus City Council voted to approve the Haslam Sports Group's land and money grab to secure an NWSL franchise in Columbus. There are a lot of people articulating why this is an awful deal but this article from @matternews.bsky.social
sums it up pretty succinctly tinyurl.com/m6k7mttd #nwsltocbus

Not only is local government stealing a public park and giving it to billionaires for free, they’re throwing in $50 million to spruce it up for them. Meanwhile, guess who has a $50 million budget shortfall? Couldn’t be clearer who matters around here.

And my main argument was not the timeline. It was being against giving money to billionaires at the cost of the most disadvantaged in Columbus.

Columbus City Council approves NWSL deal amid split vote, dispute over McCoy Park plan The vote comes as Columbus competes with other cities for an NWSL expansion team, with league officials expected to make a final decision soon.

Jk, they took like one sentence from my interview and toned me way down.

I'm not skeptical. I was furious.

A photo of a news program interviewing a person with short dark hair. The caption is "Sarah Lucas - Concerned Columbus resident. Columbus City Council passes NWSL deal"

Mama, I'm gonna be a star!

if I read this right, this would have failed 4-4-1 under the Our City, Our Say districts were they in place last year

dislike Columbus stealing from its poorest and giving to billionaires?

ourcityoursay.com

People are fighting against Columbus giving billionaires everything and constituents nothing.

"Don't pit women against..."
1) SW Columbus
2) People with disabilities

Don't lecture me like you have the high ground, sir.

You're the one screwing opportunities of women, folks with disabilities, Franklinton, and pretty much every CBus resident with your guise of championing women's sports.

Imagine how cool tonight would have been, and what a unifying moment we could have had as a city, if the ownership class would just pay for their own fucking land and their own fucking buildings.

Women’s sports deserves better.

#NWSLtoCBUS

And that's why they call it The Columbus Way!

“I’m so pissed!” Now watch me give the Ginther and the Haslams exactly what they want. All performative BS.