FC Cincinnati stadium: Who's who in West End debate

The drama over the attempt to bring a Major League Soccer stadium to the West End has a lengthy cast of characters that includes some of the most powerful people in Cincinnati and others who have crusaded for decades as advocates for the black community.

Here's a who's who of those involved as FC Cincinnati seeks support for a $200 million stadium on the current site of Cincinnati Public Schools' Stargel Stadium, next to Taft IT High School:

For the Stargel site

Former Mayor Mark Mallory: Mallory is one of the most popular mayors in city history, winning two terms and hailing from a respected local political dynasty. Plus, he grew up and still has a house in the West End. FC Cincinnati President and General Manager Jeff Berding has hired him to be a community liaison, which Mallory says isn't just as a soccer salesman, he's also there to tell the club what the community wants. Mark Mallory isn't to be confused with Joe Mallory, vice president of the local NAACP, who has expressed some concerns about the West End stadium plan.

Cincinnati Mayor John Cranley: He brokered a plan to bring the stadium to Oakley – an option that remains on the table – and even went to New York with Berding to pitch MLS on Cincinnati as home to an expansion team. He hasn't said much about a West End location publicly, but behind the scenes he is reportedly supportive.

Jeff Berding: Of course he is for it. He's making the request. The former executive for the Bengals is backed by club owners Carl and Chris Lindner, David Thompson, Scott Farmer, Steve Hightower, George Joseph, Mike Mossel and Jack Wyant – some of the wealthiest businessmen in Cincinnati.

Against the Stargel site

Influential black leaders: Former Mayor Dwight Tillery has emerged as a voice advocating to protect Cincinnati's historically black neighborhoods, fighting an expansion of Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center in Avondale. He lost that fight, but he's using the same playbook here. Councilman Wendell Young voted for the city to provide infrastructure money for an MLS stadium in Oakley, but he has been passionately against the West End site that's being considered now. The neighborhood, he says, has been damaged before in the name of progress and this is just one more step in that direction. And State Sen. Cecil Thomas, D-North Avondale, said not this site, but maybe elsewhere in the West End.

Voices for students: Julie Sellers, as head of the teachers union, has been vocal in her opposition to the idea. She is concerned the schools won't see the full tax benefit of a stadium. Michelle Dillingham, who founded Cincinnati Educational Justice Coalition, has made the same argument. She has organized a petition that demands FC Cincinnati pay fair taxes.

Undecided or divided

The West End Community Council: Cincinnati is a city of neighborhoods, with most having volunteer elected councils to represent their interests at City Hall. The bigger the neighborhood, the bigger the community council voice, since no council members want to alienate large groups of voters. The West End Community Council is typically fairly quiet. But when community leaders who don't live in the West End spoke out against the Stargel site, President Keith Blake fired back in the nicest letter possible. His message: This is our decision. Board members asked a lot of questions in a meeting Tuesday evening but haven't voted on a position yet.

The actual community: Residents, including those with kids in the neighborhood Hays-Porter School, have been mixed in their views, with a number attending meetings to voice questions and concerns. Berding has pledged to sign a community benefits agreement, a legal document in which promises he makes to the community could be enforced with court action. As a decision nears on the stadium site, many will be watching to see if residents reach a consensus position.

NAACP: The organization is tracking the deal. It's urging transparency and has made it clear the NAACP will oppose anything that is not in the best interest of students and West End residents.

Over-the-Rhine Community Council: It has created a committee, led by preservation activist Margy Waller, to gather input from residents of Over-the-Rhine, which borders the West End. These ideas are expected to make it into the community benefits agreement.

The decision-makers

Cincinnati Public Schools board: The school board hasn't been in a seat this hot in years, with hundreds turning out for its last two meetings. Berding has pledged to build the district a new, better Stargel Stadium right down the street in exchange for getting the site of the current Stargel. But the school board also has a vested interest in how much FC Cincinnati would pay in taxes on the land. The board has changed significantly in the past six months, with two new members elected and one appointed. Members have given no hint at how they'll vote, but powerful forces are pulling them in different directions. Political power brokers on the Cincinnati Business Committee helped some get elected, and that group's membership overlaps with the FC Cincinnati ownership. But Julie Sellers, president of the Cincinnati Federation of Teachers, has a powerful voice in board elections and is insistent that all taxes be paid.

Cincinnati City Council: If the financial ask for the West End site differs significantly from the Oakley site, City Council would have to approve any tax breaks and money for infrastructure. There also would need to be a development agreement specific to the West End. The last council, in a 5-3 vote, approved a $31 million deal for the stadium to locate in Oakley, but both the site and the council are different now, with three new members elected in November.

Hamilton County commissioners: The board approved $15 million to build a garage for the stadium, saying it made good business sense because other development in Oakley would follow. The West End site involves the WCET garage, which is already slated to be replaced. Again, specifics haven't been laid out, but it seems likely that FC Cincinnati will still seek help paying for a new garage. That garage site would benefit Music Hall and other Over-the-Rhine events as well as a soccer stadium.

Several more meetings are scheduled on FC Cincinnati's West End stadium plan, all in the West End. They are: