New York Islanders (NHL) co-owner Jon Ledecky still expects a summer Belmont Park arena groundbreaking, despite delays in preparation of a environmental impact statement (EIS).
The EIS is due Sunday, but officials with Empire State Development say there are slight delays with its preparation, pushing back release to sometime in July. That slight delay won’t affect the construction timeline, which calls for a summer groundbreaking and associated approval of the project. Construction schedules–especially this early out–are always built with plenty of flexibility, so a slight delays in the EIS should not impact the Belmont Park arena groundbreaking. From Newsday:
“We know that Long Islanders feel passionately about this project, and we are in the process of scheduling a board meeting in July specifically to release the Final Environmental Impact Statement,” Sterne said. “Fans, community members and local leaders can rest assured that at this time, we do not expect any major effect on the arena’s scheduled opening.”…
Ledecky, who was attending the Tom Seaver ceremony at Citi Field Thursday, said he didn’t have a target date for the groundbreaking and insisted there was no significant holdup in the timeline.
“No hitches,” Ledecky said. “Full steam ahead.”
The new arena is expected to open for the 2021-2022 NHL season.
Rendering courtesy New York Islanders.
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