New York Cosmos Stadium

The New York Cosmos Stadium was a proposed 25,000-seat soccer-specific stadium and multipurpose facility.[1] It was to be located in the New York metropolitan area in Nassau County, just over the city border.[2][3] Plans were submitted to New York's Empire State Development Corporation. Upon completion, it would have been the home stadium of the New York Cosmos.[4] The plan was abandoned in 2016.

New York Cosmos Stadium
LocationElmont, New York
Coordinates40°42′31.5966″N 73°43′33.747″W
OperatorNew York Cosmos
Capacity25,000
Construction
ArchitectPopulous / Spector Group
Structural engineerCameron Engineering
General contractorTurner Construction Company / McKissack & McKissack
Tenants
New York Cosmos (NASL)

Plan

The stadium was intended to be part of a privately financed $400 million[3][5] entertainment complex known as Elmont Town Crossings, designed to be built within Belmont Park. Along with the stadium, the project would have included a Cosmos museum, nearly 250,000 square feet of retail space and restaurants, a 175-room hotel, a pedestrian bridge over Hempstead Turnpike, better road access along the Hempstead Turnpike and Cross Island Parkway, improvements to the LIRR Belmont Park station, new parking space, a new 4.3-acre park, a youth soccer field, and remodeled recreational soccer fields nearby.[6] Team officials said the project would have created 500 construction jobs and 3,000 permanent, full-time jobs.[7]

A team[8][9] of architects, engineers, and contractors were assembled for the stadium project including Populous, the Spector Group, Cameron Engineering, Turner Construction Company, and McKissack & McKissack.[10]

Uses

The Cosmos had said the stadium would be host not only to their own matches but also to national and international soccer events, other sports (such as rugby and lacrosse), music concerts, and other local sports teams.[11][12]

Given the site's location away from subway lines, and close only to a infrequently-serviced Long Island Rail Road spur line, soccer consultant Jeff L’Hote questioned whether it would be "an attractive location" for a soccer stadium.[2]

Sports commentators speculated that, once built, the Cosmos stadium might be used as leverage to join Major League Soccer on favorable terms if the league was unable to build its own a stadium in the city.[13][6]

Timeline

In 2012, the New York Empire State Development Corporation issued a request for proposals (RFP) to develop an area of underutilized land at Belmont Park. In January 2013, the New York Cosmos submitted their plan.[14]

While the RFPs were being evaluated, the New York Cosmos began play at James M. Shuart Stadium at Hofstra University. The new stadium was originally aimed to be completed in 2015 and opened by 2016,[15] but had to be pushed back as time elapsed without a decision from the ESDC.[16]

In November 2015, the ESDC asked all bidders to revise and re-submit their proposals. The Cosmos revised their plan to remove one parcel of land.[17] The project was one of four proposals resubmitted to the ESDC.[17]

On December 9, 2016, the Empire State Development Corporation officially withdrew the RFP, rejecting all four plans.[18] After a second round of proposals (in which the Cosmos did not participate), the NHL's New York Islanders were chosen in December 2017 to develop the site with an 18,000 seat arena.[19]

References
  1. Brown, Julian (January 16, 2013). "New York Cosmos Propose State of the Art, $400 Million Dollar Stadium Plan". Philly Sports Live. Archived from the original on October 1, 2013.
  2. Belson, Ken (January 17, 2013). "Cosmos Unveil Plan for Soccer Stadium Near Belmont Park". The New York Times. Retrieved June 14, 2017.
  3. Bondy, Filip (January 16, 2013). "NY Cosmos plan $400 million, 25,000-seat soccer stadium at Belmont Park racetrack". NY Daily News.
  4. New York Cosmos. "About New York Cosmos Stadium". New York Cosmos.
  5. Martinez, Dave (January 16, 2013). "FIRST LOOK: New Cosmos Stadium Design Plan". Empire of Soccer.com. Archived from the original on September 29, 2013.
  6. Rubinstein, Dana (January 16, 2013). "Cosmos release details of their bid for a stadium, and maybe leverage". Politico. Retrieved October 22, 2021.
  7. USA Today (January 16, 2013). "New York Cosmos plan Belmont Park soccer stadium". USA Today.
  8. stylegrand.com. "KC's Populous architecture a major player at London Olympics – Kansas City Star". stylegrand.com. Archived from the original on October 1, 2013.
  9. Ptinceton HealthCare System Foundation. "A Builder with a Heart". Ptinceton HealthCare System Foundation.
  10. New York Cosmos. "New York Cosmos Stadium Team". New York Cosmos.
  11. New York Cosmos. "Erik Stover Answers Your Questions on the Belmont Proposal". New York Cosmos.
  12. New York Cosmos. "New York Cosmos Stadium FAQ". New York Cosmos.
  13. Bondy, Filip (January 16, 2013). "NY Cosmos plan $400 million, 25,000-seat soccer stadium at Belmont Park racetrack". nydailynews.com. The New York Daily News. Retrieved October 22, 2021.
  14. TICC. "Cosmos submit stadium plan for Belmont". Thisiscosmoscountry.
  15. Moller, Vickie (August 8, 2013). "$400 Million Soccer Stadium Proposed for Long Island". Long Island.com.
  16. Lewis, Michael (September 1, 2014). "BACK-UP PLANS: Cosmos looking into other stadium possibilities if Belmont is not approved; they're still optimistic". BigAppleSoccer.com. Archived from the original on December 20, 2016.
  17. "REVISED PLANS Report: Cosmos give NY state new proposal for Belmont stadium". Big Apple Soccer. December 14, 2015. Archived from the original on June 4, 2016. Retrieved May 6, 2016.
  18. Baumbach, Jim; Brodsky, Robert (December 9, 2016). "Belmont Park redevelopment proposals scrapped by state". Newsday. Retrieved December 9, 2016.
  19. Calder, Rich; Musumeci, Natalie (December 20, 2017). "'The Islanders are back': Belmont Park deal is official". nypost.com. The New York Post. Retrieved December 21, 2017.
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