The Willets Point Phase II Redevelopment Plan, which includes New York City FC’s facility job next to Citi Field and is scheduled to open in 2027, was approved by the New York City Council.
In a vote of 47 to 1, the government largely approved the project.
Since Barclays Center opened in Brooklyn in 2012, this would be the first major league sporting complex to be constructed in the area.
NYCFC’s 25, 000- seat facility will be personally financed and is expected to cost$ 780 million. The team already plays most of its household game at Yankee Stadium, which is co-owned by the New York Yankees and the owner of Manchester City FC in England.
” Being a landlord does not allow you to control your own life, whether that’s fan experience or income channels”, NYCFC CEO Brad Sims said in an interview. With this fresh venue, we will be able to sell the facility, which we were unable to do while playing our matches between Yankee Stadium and Citi Field, through naming right and kindness.
Sims claimed that the club should be able to produce more ticket sales thanks to the new structure. He claimed that” Premium seats at a sports stadium are not the superior tickets to see soccer.” ” Best now, 80 % of our game income is coming from general furniture. I believe that 80 % or more of our revenue will come from advanced seating or dining establishments in the new facility. It’s really a huge change there, and then also the sponsor possibilities are tremendous”.
In addition to the soccer- certain facility, the reconstruction task includes a new hotel, financial spaces, a school and around 2, 500 discounted apartments for the neighborhood.
The project’s developer, Corona, may create a community unlike any other in New York City, with access to all-priced cover, a brand-new public school, and the only soccer-specific stadium in the area.
The City Planning Commission unanimously approved the next phase of the project, which includes plenty of income-restricted housing products, a new open school, and the stadium, last month. The project also needs the approval of Mayor Eric Adams, which is anticipated to be granted immediately.
Although Adams, Queens Borough President Donovan Richards, and committee member Moya all support the project, small business owners close to Citi Field were forced to close their stores to make room for the design.
City officials task that once the project is complete, it will change the scenery and the city’s business, generating an estimated 1, 500 jobs.
( This has been updated with Brad Sims quotations. )