COLUMBUS, Ohio (WTVN)--If all goes to plan, a new stadium for Columbus Crew SC would be built on the west side of the Arena District.
Plans were unveiled for the ambitious project by the Columbus Partnership on Thursday, which has been working with the city of Columbus and a group led by Cleveland Browns Owner Jimmy Haslam to purchase the team, and build the new stadium.
The facility would be the anchor of a new development called "Confluence Village", near the confluence of the Olentangy and Scioto rivers, west of Huntington Park.
The project would cost about $230-million, with groundbreaking as early as August 2019.
Te announcement follows the plan announced Wednesday that would convert Mapfre Stadium into a community sports park, and a new practice facility for the Crew.
It all stemmed from news that broke in 2017 that Crew SC Owner Anthony Precourt was planning on moving the team to Austin, Texas next year.
Major League Soccer gave Crew supporters until the end of the year to come up with a plan for a new downtown stadium, which Precourt said was vital for the team to stay in Columbus.
Mapfre Stadium originally opened as Columbus Crew Stadium in 1999, which also hosted the "Rock on the Range" music festival from 2007 to 2018.
(photo courtesy HNBT/MKSK)