Just three months after Queens Borough President Donovan Richards recommended the approval of phase two of NYC’s first soccer stadium, the City Council has now jumped on board as well, officially giving their approval on Thursday, April 11th.
The stadium–which was originally supposed to be constructed in the South Bronx near Yankee Stadium–is set to be built in the Willets Point neighborhood of Queens with a projected completion date of 2027.
The stadium, to be used by Major League Soccer’s New York City Football Club, will have 25,000 seats and is expected to be the first electric stadium in professional soccer.
New renderings released this past March gave excited fans an inside look at the future stadium, including The Cube: an immersive, seven story front door to the stadium.
The stadium, however, is only a part of the overall Willets Point redevelopment project, which also includes 1,400 units of affordable housing, a 250-room hotel, 80,000 square feet of commercial retail space, nearly 3 acres of public open space, and more.
Mayor Adams and officials officially broke ground on the first phase of the project in December 2023 with the construction of said affordable housing.
Now that the City Council has given their approval officials can begin on phase two.
Mayor Adams stated:
We’re building a brand-new community out of the ‘Valley of Ashes’…After today’s vote, we’re one step closer to delivering that future.