On behalf of Local 3, Business Representative Dave Sands and members of the Allied Club of Queens attended a press conference held by State Senator John Liu and Metropolitan Park developers on Sunday, March 30th for the announcement of plans for an adjacent development called Flushing Skypark. This infrastructure project would connect downtown Flushing and Willets Point with a new pedestrian and bicycle bridge inspired by Manhattan’s High Line. For any reason that this bridge project does not move forward, then the development team led by Steve Cohen and Hard Rock International must instead invest $100 million over 10 years for capital improvements at Flushing Meadows Corona Park. All in all, Metropolitan Park and Flushing Skypark are expected to create thousands of good-paying union jobs.
Metropolitan Park, which recently received zoning approval in a 41-2 vote by the City Council, is the $8 billion casino and entertainment project around Citi Field proposed by New York Mets franchise owner Steve Cohen and Hard Rock International. It still requires land use approval by the New York State Legislature and a casino license from the state’s Gaming Facility Location Board. The next steps became more likely over the weekend with State Sen. Liu’s support. It also has been endorsed by Assemblywoman Larinda Hooks, Councilman Francisco Moya, and Queens Borough President Donovan Richards.
