New York Cosmos Stadium


The New York Cosmos Stadium was a proposed 25,000-seat soccer-specific stadium and multipurpose facility. It was to be located in the New York metropolitan area in Nassau County, just over the city border. 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.

Plan

The stadium was intended to be part of a privately financed $400 million 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, retail, restaurants, a 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 soccer fields nearby. Team officials said the project would have created 500 construction jobs and 3,000 permanent, full-time jobs.
A team of architects, engineers, and contractors were assembled for the stadium project including Populous, the , , Turner Construction Company, and .

Uses

The Cosmos had said the stadium would be host to national and international soccer events, other sports, music concerts, and local sports teams.
While the stadium plan was being evaluated, the New York Cosmos began play at James M. Shuart Stadium at Hofstra University. In 2013, the team opened a new practice facility at the Mitchel Athletic Complex. The new stadium was originally aimed to be completed in 2015 and opened by 2016, but had to be pushed back as more time elapsed without a decision on the plan.

Timeline

In 2012, the New York Empire State Development Corporation issued a request for proposals to develop an area of underutilized land at Belmont Park. In January 2013, the New York Cosmos delivered a response with the above plan.
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. The project was one of four competing proposals still awaiting a determination from the Empire State Development Corporation.
On December 9, 2016, the Empire State Development Corporation officially withdrew the RFP, rejecting all four plans.
After a second round of proposals, the NHL's New York Islanders were chosen in December 2017 to develop the site with an 18,000 seat arena.