SAN ANTONIO (Texas News Radio) — The Austin City Council passed two resolutions involving the Columbus Crew’s plans to move to the city early Friday morning.
The Austin American-Statesman said the city council meeting went on for nearly 18 hours.
One resolution, considered to pro-MLS, directed the city staff to evaluate Precourt Sports Ventures’ proposal to build a stadium on a city-owned plot of land in North Austin near The Domain. It also includes a separate element to find city-owned land for affordable housing.
That item passed unanimously.
The other resolution, originally considered to be hostile to MLS, had been amended to make it friendlier to PSV. It called for a bidding process to solicit other plans for the site, which the team may also bid on.
It passed as well, but on a 9-1 vote.
Team owner Anthony Precourt was at the meeting and said he was honored to be able to bring Major League Soccer “to this great city of Austin, Texas, a city I’ve enjoyed for so many years.”
Austin does not have a top tier professional sports team.
Nearby San Antonio had been considered a favorite in the league’s expansion team bidding process, which it tasked the Spurs to lead. But, that came to a freeze when the city learned Austin had been having private conversations with the league and owners of the Columbus Crew.
San Antonio officials say they are watching what happens with Austin’s MLS discussions before making a decision on how to proceed, whether that is to continue the bidding process or abandon it.
The city maintains having an MLS team in Austin makes it financially unfeasible for San Antonio to also maintain a team. The MLS has not ruled out giving San Antonio one of its two final expansion team slots.