This article or section is about a stadium or an arena that is currently under construction. It may contain information of a speculative nature and the content may change dramatically as the completion of the stadium approaches.

Citi Field
Rendering of Citi Field.
Former names	New Mets Ballpark (Planning-November 12, 2006)
Location	126th St. & Roosevelt Ave. Flushing, New York
Broke ground	November 13, 2006
Opened	Opening Day April 2009 (planned)
Owner	City of New York
Operator	New York Mets
Surface	Grass
Construction cost	$610 million
Architect	HOK Sport
Capacity	45,000 (approx.)
Field dimensions	Left Field - 335 ft (102 m) Left Center - 379 (116) Center Field - 408 (124) Right Center - 383 (119) Right Field - 330 (101)
Tenants
New York Mets (MLB) (2009-)

Citi Field will be the new ballpark for the New York Mets that is being built in Willets Point in the New York City borough of Queens as a replacement for the adjacent Shea Stadium, which was itself constructed in 1964 adjacent to the site of the 1964-1965 World's Fair. It has been designed by HOK Sport. The $850 million Citi Field, scheduled to open for the 2009 season, is being subsidized with $450 million in public funds ^[1]. Citi Field will reportedly be granted the All-Star Game in 2013^[2].

Plans for a new Mets ballpark

The original plans for what will now be Citi Field were created as part of the New York City 2012 Olympic bid. After plans for a West Side Stadium fell through, New York looked for an alternate stadium to host the opening and closing ceremonies. The Olympic stadium project was estimated to cost $2.2 billion with $180 million provided by New York City and New York State. If New York had won the bid, the stadium would have been expanded to host the opening and closing ceremonies, as well as other sporting events.

Design and construction

The new stadium is planned to have a capacity of 45,000 (42,500 seats, ~2,500 standing room). The exterior facade and entranceway rotunda will be reminiscent of Ebbets Field (a feature also present at Coors Field in Denver and Safeco Field in Seattle, which was long sought by Mets owner Fred Wilpon, a Brooklyn native). Citi Field will have an interior design that evokes design features of recent ballparks, most notably Oriole Park at Camden Yards in Baltimore. The projected cost of the new stadium and other infrastructure improvements is $610 million, with the Mets picking up $420 million of that amount. The agreement includes a 40-year lease that will keep the Mets in New York until 2049. The stadium will be accessible via the Long Island Rail Road (Shea Stadium station) and the New York City Subway 7 train (Willets Point-Shea Stadium station), as the current facility is. On March 18, 2006, the New York Mets unveiled the official model for the new stadium. By July 2006, initial construction of the new park was underway in the parking lot beyond left-field, with a projected finish ahead of Opening Day 2009 in late March. By August 2008, the New York Mets and Daktronics will be installing 12,000 square feet (1,100 m²) of integrated scoring and video boards throughout the stadium. ^[3] As of April 13, all of the structure for the Jackie Robinson Rotunda is now in place with the arched windows receiving their paneling and glass; the upper deck of the ballpark is now in the process of having its seats installed. According to recent reports, the construction is far ahead of schedule, but won't open until 2009.

Home of the Mets

This stadium will be the third stadium that the Mets call home during their nearly 50-year history. The Mets played the 1962 and 1963 seasons at the Polo Grounds, which had also been the home of the New York Yankees and New York Giants.^[4] In 1964, they moved to their current home, Shea Stadium, which in the recent frenzy of ballpark building, is now the fifth oldest stadium in Major League Baseball, and the third oldest in the National League.

Naming rights

Citi Field under construction. 10/12/07.

On November 13, 2006, it was officially announced that the stadium would be called Citi Field, named for Citigroup Inc. Citigroup will be paying $20 million a year for the naming rights to the park over the next 20 years. This made Citi Field the second major league sports venue in the area named for a corporate sponsor (after Izod Center in New Jersey, but preceding Prudential Center in Newark and Barclays Center planned for the Atlantic Yards proposal in Brooklyn), officially becoming the first in New York City itself, aside from two minor league ballparks (KeySpan Park and Richmond County Bank Ballpark). The contract includes an option on both sides to extend the contract to 35 years, and is the most expensive sports-stadium naming rights agreement ever, subsequently equaled by Barclays' $400 million deal with the Nets for their planned arena in Brooklyn. ^[5]

At the groundbreaking for Citi Field, it was announced that the main entrance, modeled on the one in Brooklyn's old Ebbets Field, will be called the Jackie Robinson Rotunda, possibly due to campaigns to forego naming rights and name the ballpark after Robinson. The Mets are spending more than $600 million for the new stadium, which New York City and New York state are also supporting with a total of $165 million for such costs as infrastructure and site preparation. On February 24, 2008, the Mets and Citigroup unveiled the new Citi Field logo. ^[6]

Planned stadium facts

Relation of Citi Field, right, to Shea Stadium.

Comparison between Shea Stadium and Citi Field (From the New York Mets website)

Citi Field Construction Photo Gallery

Citi Field as seen from Shea Stadium on Opening Day 2007. 4/9/07.	Back corner of Citi Field, behind left field. 5/13/07.	First part of brick facade installed. 6/29/07.	First level of brick facade installed, 126th Street side. 7/14/07.
Beginning to install facade, Roosevelt Avenue side. 8/4/07.	Glass partially installed, 126th Street side. 9/9/07.	Second level of facade installed, Roosevelt Avenue side. 9/21/07.	Citi Field as seen from Shea Stadium on the final day of the 2007 season. 9/30/07.
Installation of arched brick facade. 10/26/07.	Jackie Robinson Rotunda and steel for upper deck seating. 10/26/07.	Arched brick facade partially installed. 11/9/07.	Close-up of arched brick facade. 11/9/07.
Third base side of Citi Field under construction. 11/23/07.	Jackie Robinson Rotunda enclosed by steel. 1/19/08.	Facade partially installed around Jackie Robinson Rotunda. 2/19/08.	Shea Stadium and Citi Field. 3/29/08.
Shea Stadium and Citi Field. 6/27/08.	The view of the ongoing construction of Citi Field from inside Shea Stadium. 6/27/08.

See also

• Shea Stadium, the current home of the Mets.
• New Yankee Stadium, a new baseball stadium in The Bronx for the New York Yankees, under construction
• Prudential Center, a new arena in Newark, New Jersey for the New Jersey Devils, which opened in October 2007.
• Barclays Center, a new arena in Brooklyn for the current New Jersey Nets, scheduled to begin construction in August 2007 but not yet underway
• New Meadowlands Stadium, a proposed football stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey for the New York Giants and New York Jets.
• Red Bull Park, a new soccer stadium in Harrison, New Jersey for the New York Red Bulls, under construction.
• West Side Stadium, a failed proposal for a stadium and business complex over the MTA's Hudson Yards

Notes

External links

• Mets.com Citi Field Website
• Citi Field Construction Photos--Webshots
• Citi Field Construction Photos--StadiumPage.com
• Official New York Mets Website
• Official Mets Release
• Mets Ballparks from Mets Media Guide

Coordinates: 40°45′24.5″N, 73°50′44.5″W