Metropolitan New York is the home to the most professional teams of any American city. It’s kind of appropriate in the city that never sleeps. Now many of theses teams are in the process of getting new stadiums with better fan amenities and more income for the clubs.
The latest to get in on the new stadium act are the Giants and the Jets. Ground was broken Wednesday on a new football stadium being built at the Meadowlands that will house both teams. It is the first stadium to be owned by two clubs. The yet to be named open air stadium will seat 82,500 in a bowl design. It will also feature a 300,000 square foot plaza set aside for tailgating.
The $1.3 billion stadium is being built next to Giants Stadium in the Meadowlands facility. It is expected to be ready in 2010.
This is the latest stadium effort for the New York/New Jersey area.
The New York Mets are in the process of building Citi Field across from their long time home Shea Stadium in Queens. The new home of the Mets is expected to be able to hold 45,000 fans and is scheduled for a 2009 opening. The $610 million facility, like all the new stadiums on this page, was designed by HOK Sport who designed many of the new style ball parks like Camden Yards in Baltimore.
The New York Yankees are also in the stadium act building the New Yankee Stadium across from the current ballyard in the Bronx. The new Yankee Stadium is slated for an April 2009 opening. The new ballpark, which has a cost of $800 million, will seat 51,000 fans or about 6,500 fewer than the current Yankee Stadium.
Other teams in the area getting new stadiums are the NHL’s New Jersey Devils. They move into a new facility, the 18,000 seat Prudential Center aka “The Rock”, this October in Newark after being in the Meadowlands since their inception. It is the first new arena to open in metropolitan New York since the Continental Airlines Arena opened in 1981.
The NBA’s New Jersey Nets are also trying to get a new facility. The team is looking to move to Atlantic Yards in Brooklyn for the start of the 2009 season but while the facility has been approved ground breaking is yet to have taken place due to lawsuits over the construction. The Nets have a lease at the Meadowlands until 2013 but can walk away if the new facility is ready. They also have an open invitation to join the Devils at the Prudential Center.
