City officials and the Boston Planning and Development Agency (BPDA) have moved to slow down the planned renovation of White Stadium in Franklin Park amid public pushback on the pace and scope of the project. For one thing, a zoning amendment key to the planning was removed from the agenda of the Zoning Commission, which had scheduled a vote on it Wednesday of this week.

During a virtual city-sponsored meeting Monday evening, city officials took up the stadium proposal, which would include funding from the owners of a new professional women’s soccer team, Boston Unity Soccer Partners, which wants to use the city facility as its home base. Mayor Wu’s administration, which has committed up to $50 million in municipal funding to the project, has hailed it as an ideal public-private partnership that will reinvigorate a key public asset on the Dorchester-Roxbury-Jamaica Plain line.

Wu said on Monday that she remains firmly committed to the plan, calling it “maybe one of the most important projects we undertake in our administration.” However, she and other city officials acknowledged during the meeting that the ambitious timetable for starting work and re-opening the facility was now under review.

Morgan McDaniel, the city's deputy chief of operations, said that demolition will not begin in April as originally planned. As to the schedule, McDaniel said, “I think we were initially hoping to be able to begin demolition in April since we are in a tight timeline to be able to take advantage of this amazing opportunity, but we do want to make sure that we’re bringing people along and have comfort with the design.

“So, we’re not going to be engaging in demolition until we’ve resolved some of these key items that people have been speaking with us about.”

McDaniel said that an Open Space Stadium Zoning amendment, which had already been approved by the BPDA Board, was taken off the Zoning Commission’s agenda “for more consideration.” The decision to hold off on a piece of legal groundwork to help clear the path for the renovation makes for a notable pause in the regulatory process.

“We want to also state that the city will not begin demolition until we have a comprehensive plan for the stadium that we believe confidently meets BPS needs and addresses stakeholder concerns.”

McDaniel said that neighborhood meetings would be held in April to discuss traffic issues and usage plans with abutting neighborhoods and will finish prior to votes or demolition.

Added Wu: “We really even had to have some real internal conversations…Overall how do we really try to put it all together and stay focused on the why and the who and the bigger picture of how all of the pieces really mesh together.”

The stadium project has been following an aggressive timeline relative to most public projects. The proposal, which was formally filed in December but had community meetings beforehand last summer and fall, was the subject of four meetings in January and earlier this month, including two Article 80 meetings, two Landmarks meetings, and a Parks and Recreation meeting. Even with delays looming ahead, city officials still expect to complete the renovations by spring 2026.

The public comment period, which ended Jan. 31, has revealed concerns by key stakeholders, including Zoo New England Director John Linehan, who wrote in detail about his concerns about the process, how fast it seemed to be going, and the lack of important details on transportation issues.

The meeting on Monday also showed the frustration mounting on all sides navigating what most agree is a good opportunity to renovate the stadium after past failed attempts.

Emerald Necklace director Karen Mauney-Brodek said during the call that the stadium plan could work, but only with more time and effort. “I think this park is meant to serve the community around it and the BPS students on a full-time basis,” she said. “I fear those conversations and needs are going to be displaced by a massive, new facility that is amazing…but was never contemplated in the Action Plan. That process could happen, the community could be onboard, but now with the timing and demolition plan…That’s going to require a lot more time than the 2026 deadline imposed here.”

The city had planned to demolish the east grandstand this spring and begin rebuilding it with numerous amenities for BPS students, including a lounge, a fitness center, sports medicine instruction, a kitchen, and updated locker rooms – as well as offices for the BPS Athletics Department.

For its part, Boston Unity plans to save the outer clamshell wall of the stadium and rebuild the west grandstand and construct the Grove outdoor space, just south of the stadium and now fenced off, for gameday and community gatherings. 

While initially well received in the community, the fuzzy details and speedy timeline brought out serious concerns from abutters and advocates during public meetings.

On Monday, McDaniel told an audience of more than 300 participants that the partners will no longer present separately, but as one project. Though planning was described as having been “segmented," full details were presented during Monday's meeting by Dorchester architect J.P. Charboneau of Crowley Cottrell.

McDaniel also said they have only presented broad plans on transportation, “but understand that now is the time to dig further into the details.” Boston Unity and the city are developing those plans, and they will be the basis for the April meetings.

“We’re proposing that we will hold workshops in early April with each affected neighborhood to talk about each item in detail – street by street, block by block, what it is we’re proposing and what is the feedback,” added McDaniel.

Wu, noting that she has immersed herself in research of Frederick Law Olmsted’s thinking about Franklin Park, referenced an idea called “communitiveness.” She said that was to make the park a place where people care for one another in a democratic way. “To really live that out it has to be in shared ownership with the community,” she said.

During the meeting’s chat period, there was a lot more support for the project than in previous sessions, but some of that support came with the caveat of needing more details. Others, like Egleston Square resident Pete Duggans, noted that he loves the park because of its quiet and empty spaces like a stadium – a relief after a long week of work and the constant hum of the city’s neighborhoods. He said he wasn’t sure about Wu’s ideas around “communitiveness,” a comment that drew Wu back onto the call to respond.

“This was part of Olmsted’s original vision, and I think sometimes we are trying to modernize that in a way that is actually not accurate,” she said. “The vision ultimately was to bring people together and give everyone a reason to be there. Activity, health, well-being. It is simply not accurate to say this was outside of what Olmsted planned for in all the elements of the park.”

During this bit of a slowdown, meetings will continue. The next BPDA Impact Advisory Group (IAG) convenes on Mon., Feb. 26.

This story was updated on Friday, Feb. 16 to correct an earlier version that referred to the meeting as BPDA-led meeting. It was led by the City of Boston, but not specifically the BPDA. Also, the original story included the wrong title for Morgan McDaniel, who is the deputy chief of operations for the city of Boston.