The Mets yesterday unveiled a model of a planned $500M
ballpark that "blends nostalgic design elements from
Brooklyn's beloved Ebbets Field with modern features like a
retractable roof and a removable grass playing field,"
according to Richard Sandomir of the N.Y. TIMES. The
unveiling came three days after NYC Mayor Rudolph Giuliani
announced a proposal to help pay for new stadiums for both
the Yankees and the Mets with "nearly" $600M in tax money
from Manhattan businesses, but "it was unclear" how much the
city would contribute to the Mets' park and how much of the
cost "the team would bear." Mets Owner Fred Wilpon said
that the team "would help pay the costs," without offering
specifics, but "expressed optimism that the financing
negotiations could be completed in the next few months."
Wilpon added that he "hoped" the park, which, like Shea
Stadium, would be owned by the city, would be ready by 2002
(N.Y. TIMES, 4/24). On Long Island, John Jeansonne reports
that the stadium would be built "directly adjacent" to Shea
and would have a capacity of 45,000, complete with 75 luxury
suites, 4,500 club seats and four "party rooms" for
baseball. The removable grass field would be "cultivated in
a single huge tray -- roughly 425 feet square -- complete
with irrigation system," and would be "rolled out beyond the
outfield fences into a fenced parking lot when the stadium
would be used for other purposes." With the field rolled
out, the stadium "could be converted" to a 60,000-seat
facility for events such as concerts and basketball games.
Wilpon: "This is not a dream at all. This will become a
reality. We could have events like the Final Four." Wilpon
said he plans to speak with city officials today "in hopes
of beginning construction by the end of the year," and added
that, "with the economics of building such a stadium," the
Mets "will probably raise some of the money" through the
sale of naming rights (NEWSDAY, 4/24).
NOTES: Wilpon said that he has recommended to Giuliani
that "instead of tearing down" Shea upon completion of the
new park, the city should "retrofit" it into an 80,000-seat
football stadium suitable for an NFL team, "most likely the
Jets." Wilpon, on Shea: "It's a better shape for a football
stadium than a baseball stadium" (Luke Cyphers, N.Y. DAILY
NEWS, 4/24)....Yankee Stadium will reopen tonight, as the
Yankees take on the Detroit Tigers (N.Y. TIMES, 4/24).
