MTA Approves West Side Stadium Bid

After months of bickering between the two rivals, the MTA last Thursday unanimously voted to select the New York Jets’ proposal for the West Side railyards over a rival bid by Cablevision.
The vote was the culmination of a public bidding process introduced by the MTA in an effort to garner more revenue from the sale of the railyards.
The 14-member MTA board chose the Jets’ proposal to build a stadium/convention center, which was worth $190 million less than Cablevision’s bid. A third, $1 billion proposal from TransGas Energy Systems was discounted, because there were too many strings attached.
The promise of breaking ground on the West Side stadium keeps Olympic hopes afloat. “Today’s vote is a great victory for New York City, because the Jets plan to build the New York Sports & Convention Center is the best plan for New York City, and is essential to the success of our city’s Olympic dream,” said NYC2012 founder Daniel L. Doctoroff.
If the Olympic bid falls through, New York will still have the Super Bowl. The NFL awarded the 2010 event to New York City contingent upon the building of the West Side stadium.
The proposal also brings with it the extension of the No. 7 subway line. That $2 billion project will be financed by the city.
And even as the plan for a $1.9 billion stadium on the West Side of Manhattan was clearing its next hurdle, other community leaders were still advocating an entirely different locale for the stadium: Queens.
Should the West Side plans ultimately fall through, the Queens Chamber of Commerce is all in favor of a new stadium in Queens, according to executive vice president Bill Egan. “We would, of course, love to see the stadium come to Queens,” he said. “It would be a tremendous boost.” Egan said the Willets Point site would be ideal because it is centrally located, accessible via public transportation, highways and an airport. “It does seem to be a perfect spot,” he said.