Stadium Discussion

[FredMertz]

Maybe with some subway tile. And a horrible stench in the summer.

25% sweat, 25% cat urine, 50% rotting garbage?

 

[mgarbowski]

25% sweat, 25% cat urine, 50% rotting garbage?

You left out pigeon urea.
But then you would do that, wouldn't you.

 

[Baker_Dough]

Christian Araos, writing for The Athletic, got a look at the Harlem Yards proposal and it had a timeline of 4.5 years from approval to completion!

It emerged recently that New York City FC is seeking to build a $700 million stadium in the South Bronx as the developer-friendly YIMBY blog obtained a year-old proposal for a site at a rail yard along the Harlem River that the state seeks to develop. NYCFC and its partners acknowledged the proposal but backtracked, stating that it was one of many sites being considered. Still under review, their proposal reflects their ambitions not only as a football club but as a cultural institution.

NYCFC is now in their fourth season at Yankee Stadium, the “temporary location” Manchester City CEO Ferran Soriano suggested the club would need to play at for “two years, maybe three” when they were officially announced in May 2013.

Through a Freedom of Information Law request,The Athletic was able to obtain both NYCFC’s and another developer’s proposal to build on the Harlem River Yards in the Mott Haven section of The Bronx. If approved, City would partner with Related Companies and Somerset Partners to build a stadium plus housing and medical, commercial and entertainment space. The stadium would seat 26,000 but has the potential to be expanded “if appropriate.” A financial summary in the proposal explains that the group would pay $500,000 a year for 99 years for the air rights above the rail yardand contribute $25 million for the construction of an esplanade and $100 million in infrastructure improvements. Exact financial details were not included.

According to the proposal, it would take about four and a half years from approval until the stadium would be completed. At least 550 units of affordable housing, built by Somerset and Related Companies, would come first. They are currently building the largest private housing development in the city at the Hudson River Yards, which is also being built above an active rail yard. The Chairman of Related Companies, Stephen Ross, is the principal owner of the Miami Dolphins and Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Fla. He is also the founder of RSE, a private investment firm which operates the International Champions Cup, a club competition that Manchester City’s men’s and women’s teams will participate in this summer. The Athletic understands that this proposal was kept under heavy secrecy within Related Companies.

Speaking to reporters last week, club president Jon Patricof downplayed the club’s bid, noting that the Harlem River Yards project was not an “active site.” Both proposals reviewed are dated from 2017. The Empire State Development Corporation said it is still accepting responses to its original request for expressions of interest, a sign that it is not yet ready to reward either proposal.

The other proposal was submitted by developers L&M Development and Omni New York. The project, a $2.2 billion mixed use complex called Alexander Landing, would include about 170 more units of housing than what NYCFC, Related and Somerset propose. It says it would create 1,611 full-time jobs, as their proposal also includes building a charter school, healthcare facility and beer garden. It projects a 10-year span between submission and the final completion of construction.

The NYCFC proposal does not state the number of jobs their mixed-use project would create. It instead focuses on both the community and humanitarian impact their stadium would have. They vow to hire a local workforce and exclusively use union workers in the construction, build a permanent home for its City In the Community charity, a university tailored to producing scholars majoring in and around the business of soccer, an urgent care clinic and a multi-use square for local retailers and food trucks. The actual impact this would have on the South Bronx is difficult to project, but the intended impact would be to establish the club and by important extension its owners as patrons and philanthropists to one of the most historically disadvantaged communities in the city.

The rail yards site is about a mile from the playground where the club announced its New York City Soccer Initiative — a partnership with the Mayor’s Office, Adidas and the US Soccer Foundation to build 50 pitches across all five boroughs. And a half-mile away from the mini pitch it built at a public school. The club also has a partnership with the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office sponsoring weekend-night soccer programs for youth. Executives point to these community efforts whenever their ambition is questioned and while it may read as a deflection, it does show where the club devotes much of its resources.

The club’s owners, City Football Group, say in the proposal that their principles toward building infrastructure include: positive soccer development, local employment, environmentally friendly practices and engaging with the community to meet its needs. Just how much a 26,000-seat stadium intended for use beyond soccer meets the South Bronx community’s needs remains to be seen. CFG said 60 percent of the jobs at their complex in Manchester went to locals and although The Bronx is recovering well, it could use some more jobs. Property values in Mott Haven and other parts of the borough are rising rather quickly as well. Somerset are key figures in the neighborhood as developers of a six-tower residential project that’s being built directly west of the proposed stadium. It is touted in the proposal.

Patricof and NYCFC’s connected fans stress that they have considered more than 30 sites but decided not to pursue a stadium within Flushing Meadows Corona Park partly because it expected CFG’s majority owners in Abu Dhabi to be heavily scrutinized, especially when building on city park property. That threat will always be there so long as Abu Dhabi continues its human rights violations but the hope is that they will have amassed enough local support and gained just enough allies to overcome it. They submitted a proposal to build at Belmont Park but were criticized by fans for considering a site that was outside the five boroughs and ultimately lost to the New York Islanders’ proposal. Patricof said they are considering two sites at Willets Point in Queens where Related recently gained approval to build 1,100 units of low-and-middle income housing. Local councilman Francisco Moya and borough president Melinda Katz already voiced support for a soccer stadium at the site.

City will continue to pursue separate stadium sites at the same time and are going to keep it close to the vest as the rather vague ‘not an active site’ statement from Patricof shows. Since no proposal has won, the Harlem River Yards site remains an open possibility even if efforts to secure the site may not be very “active.” Given their work cultivating a presence in the area, it doesn’t make sense for the site to simply go by the wayside. But the Empire State Development Corporation considers these proposals with no consistent timeline and no clear rhyme or reason. That being said, it is unlikely that an agency so close to Gov. Andrew Cuomo would consider a contentious proposal in an election year.

Should the team fail in its efforts to build at the rail yards then the site will just go down as one of the 30-plus sites. NYCFC will move on with attempts to build in Queens or wherever a relatively large plot of land in the city opens up. If Empire State Development decides in their favor, then NYCFC get to build more than a home for soccer games but a base to fulfill its greater ambitions.

(Photo by New York City FC)

So like why isn’t this forum hyped right now after that Athletic article? Usually the forum explodes over any somewhat substantial stadium news. Is it just stadium news fatigue at this point?

 

[Jon]

So like why isn’t this forum hyped right now after that Athletic article? Usually the forum explodes over any somewhat substantial stadium news. Is it just stadium news fatigue at this point?

What new info was in the article that we didn't already know? Did I miss something? 4.5 f-ing years from the RFP is accepted by ESD! We don't even know when they're going to make an announcement. There's literally nothing to get excited about at this point.

 

[FredMertz]

What new info was in the article that we didn't already know? Did I miss something? 4.5 f-ing years from the RFP is accepted by ESD! We don't even know when they're going to make an announcement. There's literally nothing to get excited about at this point.

I agree - posted it as something to get very unexcited about.

 

[Jon]

I agree - posted it as something to get very unexcited about.

Now if ESD announced the RFP with a deadline for submission and a timeline for an announcement, then maybe I'd have some positive reaction. But without that, the article is just straight up regurgitation of the leaked info from a month ago.

 

[Schwallacus]

Orlando did that it looks silly. I'd rather have fans berating the opponents in the tunnel, like those clowns at Red Bull Arena as Vieira says.

Lol, not biased at all.

I think it looks silly in Orlando because it's extremely contrived. Would be cool if they actually let some current street famous writers go nuts on there, but that ain't happening. If CFG tried to pull this off it would end up looking full business park.

I feel Orlando failed with theirs because it's purple and white... not intimidating colors by any means at all. Honestly, slightly childish looking come to think of it. St. Pauli's is a dark, blackened tunnel with red writing, as if pirates are about to plunder ye soul. Dark, brooding, and well done. Orlando's idea is fine, but the execution of it... is laughable.

Just foreshadowing, but light blue isn't a scary color exactly. Maybe black and orange? That might be too Halloween-esque though. The idea is awesome, but our colorway doesn't help anything.

 

[dummyrun]

So like why isn’t this forum hyped right now after that Athletic article? Usually the forum explodes over any somewhat substantial stadium news. Is it just stadium news fatigue at this point?

Because those proposals that "The Athletic was able to obtain" were posted in this thread weeks ago.

 

[Kjbert]

Leave it to Araos to repost what wasn't on here a month ago and make you pay for it a month later.

 

[LionNYC]

Leave it to Araos to repost what wasn't on here a month ago and make you pay for it a month later.

I won't pay for The Athletic until there's a better writer than Araos for NYCFC. Can't wait for another pigeon Nazi flag article that isn't retracted or an apology issued, but this time you have to pay for it.

 

[Ulrich]

give me a visitor tunnel like FC St Pauli's

I'm not sure I see how this is intimidating.... looks a lot like the entrance to many 90's/euro techno clubs and/or dive bars, and if anything, even being the visiting team, I'd be pretty pumped walking through that and having the doors open onto the massive field. Just gotta keep playing the music clips through their heads that they were listening too back in the locker room, and it turns a home field nuance into something most players can probably identify with from their nightlife.

 

[Ulrich]

Leave it to Araos to repost what wasn't was on here a month ago and make you pay for it a month later.

Fixed it.

He literally spent a month reading insightful comments from the forums, that dissect & break down the submissions, so as to frame his article.

He is the biggest hack. I have no issue with non-fans writing about the team so as to give a more neutral perspective, but his is always slanted negatively and he regurgitates ideas cribbed from the forums.

 

[Ulrich]

25% sweat, 25% cat urine, 50% rotting garbage?

As long as there are 2-3 rats fighting over a fried chicken bone....

 

[sundance]

Because those proposals that "The Athletic was able to obtain" were posted in this thread weeks ago.

https://twitter.com/x/status/997472450911891457

 

[dummyrun]

https://twitter.com/x/status/997472450911891457

We should put an Athletic-style paywall on the Stadium Thread.

 

[Christopher Jee]

I feel Orlando failed with theirs because it's purple and white... not intimidating colors by any means at all. Honestly, slightly childish looking come to think of it. St. Pauli's is a dark, blackened tunnel with red writing, as if pirates are about to plunder ye soul. Dark, brooding, and well done. Orlando's idea is fine, but the execution of it... is laughable.

Just foreshadowing, but light blue isn't a scary color exactly. Maybe black and orange? That might be too Halloween-esque though. The idea is awesome, but our colorway doesn't help anything.

Yeah, and scary isn't really our / CFG's vision for domination. It's more about optimism, inclusivity and the long play. Tribalism through self-love vs. other-hate.

 

[LionNYC]

We should put an Athletic-style paywall on the Stadium Thread.

Shitposts are free. Serious stuff is locked.

 

[dummyrun]

I won't pay for The Athletic until there's a better writer than Araos for NYCFC. Can't wait for another pigeon Nazi flag article that isn't retracted or an apology issued, but this time you have to pay for it.

The roster for the main Athletic Soccer page that they announced yesterday is one of the best groups of soccer writers I've seen in one place, though. I'll probably break down and subscribe.

 

[dummyrun]

Shitposts are free. Serious stuff is locked.

Based on how likes are distributed I'd say this business model should be the other way around.

 

[Schwallacus]

I'm not sure I see how this is intimidating.... looks a lot like the entrance to many 90's/euro techno clubs and/or dive bars, and if anything, even being the visiting team, I'd be pretty pumped walking through that and having the doors open onto the massive field. Just gotta keep playing the music clips through their heads that they were listening too back in the locker room, and it turns a home field nuance into something most players can probably identify with from their nightlife.

Considering most players now are born in or near the 90's, I feel there aren't too many 3 or 4 year old kids hitting up the 90's techno or dive bar scene. But I do get that it isn't the most intimidating thing. Just something different, and obviously a player isn't going to shit their pants reading words painted on a wall. Maybe it psychologically distracts them from the task at hand for a second, reading daring sea shanties, or what looks like Comic Sans font telling you to die and the like?