Source: NYCFC Prepping Proposal To Build Soccer-Specific Stadium At Belmont Park

NYCFC is "preparing to submit a proposal to develop a soccer stadium at Belmont Park racetrack," according to a source cited by Jim Baumbach of NEWSDAY. A bid would "put the team in competition with the Islanders’ plans to develop their own new hockey arena" at the site. The deadline to "answer the state’s request for proposals at Belmont" is 2:00pm ET on Thursday. A decision on a winning proposal "isn’t expected to come ... for months." The source said that Belmont is "not NYCFC’s preferred choice for an arena location." The club is "looking at a handful of other spots within the city limits that it prefers over Belmont, which is state-run property in Elmont, just outside the Queens border." The source said that NYCFC is "partnering with developer Related Co. on its submission." The Islanders are "expected to submit a bid to develop a new arena in conjunction with Sterling Project Development" (NEWSDAY, 9/26).