A short-term delay on construction could mean the Isles start '21-22 with a big road tripGETTY IMAGES
Construction on the Islanders’ Belmont Park arena was "stopped on Friday as part of the state’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic," and an "extended delay would put the 17,113-seat arena in jeopardy of not being ready" for the start of the '21-22 NHL season, according to Jim Baumbach of NEWSDAY. New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced that "non-essential construction will be stopped" and efforts will focus on building four new hospitals in the N.Y. area, including at Aqueduct. Cuomo's order "does not specify a time frame for the stoppage of non-essential construction." Sterling Project Development Managing Partner Richard Bowne said, “If construction restarts within a reasonable period, we expect to maintain our schedule and for the arena to be open for the 2021-22 NHL season." If it is a "short-term delay, the Islanders could start the season with an extended road trip." In the event of an "extended delay, the Islanders could look to start their season" at Nassau Coliseum, where they have been playing part-time since '18. A source said that the Islanders’ lease with Nassau Coliseum "includes two additional option years in the event the Belmont arena is not ready" (NEWSDAY, 3/28).
UPDATE ON CARRIER DOME: Onondaga County Exec Ryan McMahon said that Carrier Dome renovation "should continue" despite the order and that he has "already talked to the state about the issue." McMahon said that he "believed it would be unsafe to allow the Carrier Dome to remain undone." A Syracuse spokesperson on Friday said that the school was "looking into whether construction would have to be halted." In Syracuse, Chris Carlson noted some involved in the construction industry have "advocated for allowing construction projects outside" of N.Y.C. (Syracuse POST-STANDARD, 3/28).
AUSTIN CITY LIMITS: Austin city spokesperson David Green on Friday confirmed that construction on the Austin FC stadium is "not exempt from the shelter-in-place order" issued by city officials last week. In Austin, Chris Bils noted the order required businesses to "cease working on projects" by 11:59 pm CT on Friday while "recognizing that some sites would require more time to shut down safely." It was "not immediately clear when the stadium site might be deemed safe to shut down." An extended pause on the project "could delay the stadium from opening on time next year" (AUSTIN AMERICAN-STATESMAN, 3/28).
WORK GOES ON: In Dallas, Evan Grant noted a worker on the crew finishing off punch list items at the MLB Rangers' Globe Life Field "tested positive for coronavirus." Manhattan Construction "instituted new guidelines for workers as of Thursday but does not appear to have stopped construction" on the $1.2B ballpark (DALLAS MORNING NEWS, 3/29). Meanwhile, construction continues at SoFi Stadium after a "worker tested positive for COVID-19" (USA TODAY, 3/30)
