The City Planning Commission unanimously approved a plan to build a new home for New York City Football Club (NYCFC) in Willets Point, Queens, on Wednesday, moving the city one step closer to its first standalone soccer stadium. The proposal also includes a swath of new housing as part of a larger initiative to transform the area.
The vote advanced the second half of the Willets Point plan, which would bring a 25,000-seat soccer arena to the long underdeveloped corner of Queens, plus 1,400 affordable apartments, a 250-room hotel, 80,000 square feet of retail and nearly 3 acres of public open space.
“This is a monumental project and vision because it’s going to take obviously some years to accomplish it,” said Vice Chairman Kenneth Knuckles. “But in so doing it’s my hope that the economic tide that this project represents will take with it certainly as many local businesses, minority-, women-owned businesses as is possible. It has a tremendous job creation potential, but I hope it [is] to the benefit of the local community.”
Willets Point’s transformation has been in the works for years and is spearheaded by NYCFC, the city’s Economic Development Corp. and private real estate giants Related Companies and Sterling Equities. It is projected to generate more than $6 billion in economic impact over the next three decades.
“The club is grateful that the City Planning Commission voted to approve a transformational project for Willets Point, unlocking the largest 100% affordable housing project in over 40 years, thousands of jobs and NYC’s first-ever, union-built soccer stadium,” NYCFC Vice Chairman Marty Edelman said in a statement following the vote.
“NYCFC committed 10 years ago to build our stadium in the five boroughs, and today’s vote gets us one step closer to bringing this promise to life in Queens — the World’s Borough will be our home for the World’s Game.”
Jeff Blau, CEO of Related, issued a statement on behalf of Queens Development Group, the joint venture between Related and Sterling.
“For over a decade, the City Planning Commission has championed the redevelopment of Willets Point and been committed to ensuring it delivers much-needed affordable housing and other critical elements that will make the area a dynamic neighborhood and destination,” Blau said. “We are grateful for their vision, their dedication, and for their approval of this vision that will deliver a vibrant mixed-use community built on the bedrock of thousands of affordable housing units.”
The preliminary stage of the Willets Point revamp is already in motion and will essentially create a new neighborhood a stone’s throw from Citi Field. The city broke ground on 1,100 affordable homes and a 650-seat public school in December, and the first 880 apartments are expected to be complete by the end of 2026.
New renderings shared with the Daily News show what the stadium could look like, including the planned grand entrance dubbed the “Cube” which will feature 11,000 square feet of LEDs.
Phase 2 of the Willets Point plan already got the requisite greenlights from Queens Borough President Donovan Richards and local Community Board 7. Approval from the City Planning Commission was the penultimate hurdle before the final City Council vote.
Council approval is likely given an informal practice known as member deference, under which the Council typically follows the lead of the local member on land use issues.
Councilman Francisco Moya represents the Willets Point area and has been one of the most vocal supporters of the stadium plan. He said the project could be approved “within the next two months.”
“Today’s approval from the City Planning Commission marks another milestone in the process of bringing revitalization, progress and housing to Willets Point,” Moya said in a statement. “It’s another overwhelmingly supportive vote showing the groundswell of support for this once in a lifetime project. When you have the right partners and engage the community early on, you can get projects done.”
If the second phase passes the full review process, construction on the stadium could start as early as this year and finish in 2027, while the hotel and housing would come in 2030, according to the city.
