Stafford could use a striking building like the National Museum of the Marine Corps in Triangle, which is beautiful when seen from Interstate 95, Farshid Hakimyar told the county Planning Commission last week.
And what Hakimyar has in mind, he said, would put Stafford on the map in terms of East Coast attractions.
It’s the Colosseum Sports Resort, and he and the rest of the management group behind the proposal are marketing it as a less-intensive, community-friendly alternative to the Buc-ee’s travel plaza that’s proposed for the central part of Stafford.
Hakimyar, who lives in Stafford’s Falmouth District, is the CEO and president of the resort group, which aims to “combine state-of-the-art sports venues, upscale dining, retail outlets, health and wellness services, and premium hospitality,” according to its website.
Their plan is to acquire the property where Buc-ee’s, the Texas-based chain of gas station/convenience stores, hopes to put its third Virginia operation.
“My vision is to turn that beautiful location to a very iconic place,” Hakimyar told the Planning Commission.
However, the Buc-ee’s project is still being considered by Stafford officials. At the meeting where Hakimyar spoke, planning commissioners later voted to recommend that the county Board of Supervisors rezone the land in question from one business designation to another and approve a conditional-use permit for the travel center.
Despite that vote, many people who live near the site on the northeast corner of the intersection of Courthouse Road and Austin Ridge Drive vehemently oppose Buc-ee’s, expressing concern about issues such as the business’ potential to create traffic and pollution. Buc-ee’s are larger than other convenience stores, and the one in Stafford would include a 74,000-square-foot building, 120 gas pumps and 833 parking spaces.
At least some of the Buc-ee’s critics have now decided to back the Colosseum, and a portion of them attended a recent Zoom conference call with Hakimyar and his colleagues.
The Colosseum could host indoor and outdoor children’s sports tournaments while offering tournament families from out of town a place to stay for, say, a weekend.
It would also be a site for sports practices and health and wellness classes, Hakimyar said on the Zoom call, and serve customers from children to the elderly in a model that could be duplicated to later build Colosseums in other locations.
The resort would include Olympic-sized pools, convertible courts, sand volleyball areas, an indoor climbing wall, an outdoor soccer field, an outdoor football field, a 10,000-seat arena, and fitness amenities.
The Colosseum is expected to generate 1,700-3,500 construction jobs, and to offer 300-500 permanent jobs after opening, possibly in 2028 or 2029.
According to Hakimyar, it could generate as much as $25 million in annual tax revenue for the county.
In terms of funding the establishment of the Colosseum, he and his group say they want it to be something that Stafford residents can invest in, and their website says the project will cost about $350 million.
“We already have investors from the community, and we would like this to be a project that’s really supported by the community in every way,” Lina Constantinovici, senior investment advisor for the Colosseum, said on the Zoom call.
The Colosseum wouldn’t generate as much traffic as Buc-ee’s, either, Hakimyar said: probably a quarter of car trips or maybe even fewer.
He also took on another notable facet of Buc-ee’s: its trademark brisket.
“They’re talking about the barbecue, you know,” Hakimyar said. “We would probably cook 10 times better barbecue in our space than Buc-ee’s. I’m a big barbecue person, you know, we would bring the best of the best to the space.”
And, assuming it isn’t able to land the Buc-ee’s site, he said his group has discussed other options.
“We definitely have the backup plans for it; you know, our team are working very hard on this,” Hakimyar said.
Southern Stafford resident Allen Watkins, who attended the Zoom call, told the Board of Supervisors a day later that he hoped the Colosseum group would instead take its vision to 132 acres of undeveloped land south of U.S. 17. That tract, known as Belmont Park, was considered for a sports training center a few years ago.
“How’s that for revitalizing Route 17 by providing an exciting destination and giving our citizens services they need?” Watkins asked rhetorically.
Bart Randall, who ran unsuccessfully last year for the Garrisonville District supervisor’s seat, was also on the Zoom call.
The Colosseum would benefit Stafford residents more than the Buc-ee’s, which would be geared toward travelers on I-95, he wrote in an email to the Free Press.
It would be run by local people and provide a place for local sporting activities, Randall wrote, and potentially for high school graduations and other events.
“I am a sports guy, so I think this would be fantastic,” he wrote. “Buc-ee’s is a nice place to visit, but I don’t want one in my backyard. The sports resort has possibilities that the county can’t even imagine right now.”
