Though this was almost certainly not its intention, the Supreme Judicial Court may have recast the narrative of Mayor Michelle Wu’s second term on Tuesday.
After considerable delay, the court ruled the city can continue the renovation of White Stadium, effectively ending the most contentious fight of Wu’s time in office.
The justices ruled the main plaintiffs in the case, the Emerald Necklace Conservancy, had no standing to bring the case in the first place. They also determined the stadium’s status as school properly negated the claims that the renovation violates state law protecting parkland.
It all adds up to a big win for Wu, who has faced more than a year of allegations that she was stuffing an unpopular and possibly illegitimate idea down the throat of a community that didn’t want it. The prospect of losing must have been nightmarish for her.
It’s fair to say that White Stadium was an unlikely choice for a crusade. The stadium has been a mess for years, but somehow it became a mess everyone had learned to live with. Plans to improve it had been floated and discarded without fanfare or outrage. It was as though everyone had decided it wasn’t great, but it was good enough.
Politically, it didn’t help Wu that the catalyst for this project was bringing a women’s professional soccer team to Franklin Park. Though Boston Legacy FC has committed to paying $190 million of the cost of the $325 million project, the claim the city was somehow selling out the community around Franklin Park resonated in some quarters. Many would argue that Wu could have chosen a more worthy cause for a 2 ½ year dogfight.
For my part, I became an advocate for restoring White Stadium years ago. Unlike some so-called advocates, I’ve toured White Stadium multiple times and was shocked by its decrepitude. I supported construction magnate John Fish’s idea of renovating it in 2013 - which died a quiet death after Mayor Thomas M. Menino left office before it could be realized. And I’ve never changed my mind that a new White Stadium would be a great benefit for the young people of Boston.
I give Wu’s courtroom adversaries, the Emerald Necklace Conservancy, great credit for its deep concern about Franklin Park. It fought this battle for principled reasons, and the finished product will be better for its advocacy.
Of course, no ruling will change the fact that a large and vocal contingent of neighboring residents are uneasy with the White Stadium renovation.
It’s up to the city to prove the many remaining issues of access can be resolved without placing an undue burden on residents. Wu should expect to be held to her promises this will be an economic engine for Roxbury, Dorchester, and Mattapan, beginning with the awarding of contracts to renovate and operate it. And that this will be a facility for Boston Public School students first, and for a soccer team second.
Those are the reasons this project is worth it.
As for Wu, it’s fair to say the start of her second term has been a slog. After her resounding victory in the mayor’s race last year, Wu immediately became the target of criticism. Black activists have argued that she is both too inaccessible and too inflexible. Progressives say she isn’t going far enough in pushing their issues. Even cyclists are bitterly critical, even though Wu is literally the first champion of their causes to occupy the mayor’s office.
But wins like Tuesday’s offer an opportunity to reset. Instead of debating what happens if Wu loses the White Stadium case, the conversation can now move to what the renovation can bring to Boston. It can dampen the talk that she’s damaged politically, or headed to some other work opportunity.
The truth is that Wu, for better or worse, is the same person who destroyed Josh Kraft a year ago, the same person who has never, in fact, had a single close race in her political career.
We might not know for years whether White Stadium was a visionary idea or a lousy idea. But what we know today is that Wu took a considerable political risk, stuck to her guns, and won.
Adrian Walker is a Globe columnist. He can be reached at adrian.walker@globe.com. Follow him @Adrian_Walker.