Quantcast

The DNAinfo archives brought to you by WNYC.
Read the press release here.

Soccer Stadium or Hockey Arena Would Be Good for Willets Point: Katz

By Katie Honan | January 27, 2017 4:43pm | Updated on January 30, 2017 8:45am
 Construction crews were finishing demolition of a strip of former auto body shops in Willets Point to prepare for its multi-billion dollar renovation.
Construction crews were finishing demolition of a strip of former auto body shops in Willets Point to prepare for its multi-billion dollar renovation.
View Full Caption
DNAinfo/Katie Honan

CORONA — Borough President Melinda Katz said the city should dream bigger about the fate of the famed Willets Point — saying a soccer stadium could be one of the projects built at the former Iron Triangle. 

With the proposed plan for the area currently being battled in court, Katz said in her annual state of the borough address Friday that city officials should rethink the fate of the 62-acre site.

“New York City’s land is not limitless, and with the projected growth in our borough, this highly coveted area of Willets Point needs to be remediated and prepped for a cleaner future,” she said.

The borough "should be unafraid to think bigger," she added.

Thinking bigger could mean anything from a soccer stadium to a hockey arena, an "eco-recreation center" or more parking for the park and it's many activities. Katz also suggested a school could go on the land, which has already been proposed in the plan passed in 2013. 

RELATED

► Here Are Four Willets Point Plans That Never Happened
 MAP: Here's How Far Willets Point Redevelopment Projects Have Progressed
► Mayor Unveils Massive Willets Point Redevelopment Plan

Katz's suggestions are the latest in a long list of plans that have been batted around for the land near Citi Field since it was first built in the early 1900s. 

Major League Soccer officials wanted to put a stadium inside Flushing Meadows-Corona Park, but that plan was blocked over concerns about taking away parkland.

"I think it's opening the door to making it a reality," Assemblyman Francisco Moya, an avid soccer fan who was in favor of the Flushing Meadows-Corona Park stadium, said of Katz's plans.

He said it's a great vision and recognizes the large soccer fan base in Queens. 

"I think this is a bold step in terms of economic development planning. Soccer would be the economic engine," he said. 

Demolition on city-owned land at Willets Point began this summer, and an Economic Development Corporation official said the majority of it will be finished by summer.

After that, remediation work will happen along with future redevelopment, which is still in litigation.