FC Cincinnati General Manager Jeff Berding is scheduled to speak to the Cincinnati Public School Board of Education Monday night, amid concerns from West End residents that a new soccer stadium would interfere with Taft Technology High School's Stargel Stadium.
Berding hopes to lure a professional soccer franchise to Cincinnati and will apparently learn if MLS picks Cincinnati in February.
The West End is one of three possible locations for FC Cincinnati. The team has announced it will build a new, privately funded $200 million-plus soccer stadium in Oakley, the West End or Newport.
In a statement last week Berding said, "FCC is currently exploring whether it can assemble the land needed to allow for a stadium development in the West End. We are frustrated that we cannot share more detail at this time but have said that some of the site configurations include Stargel Stadium, some do not. If we would build on a site that included Stargel, FCC commits to building a new bigger and better Stargel adjacent to the school."
Berding says he hopes West End residents and community leaders will be open-minded. He will speak to the West End Community Council Tuesday at 6:00 p.m. The Cincinnati School Board meeting is Monday at 6:30 p.m.
