New York Mets owner Steve Cohen has big plans in Queens that extend beyond the confines of Citi Field. On Tuesday, Cohen revealed his plans for Metropolitan Park, an entertainment district outside the stadium that will include a casino, hotel, and music venue.
The project would cost $8 billion and would also provide amenities like 20 acres of green space, athletic fields and playgrounds. The entertainment district would be run by Hard Rock International, in conjunction with Cohen, who said he wanted to improve the fan experience on and off the field.
"It's time the world's greatest city got the sports and entertainment park it deserves," Cohen said, per the New York Post. "When I bought this team, fans and the community kept saying we needed to do better. Metropolitan Park delivers on the promise of a shared space that people will not only want to come to and enjoy but can be truly proud of."
There is still a lot of work to be done in order to get the proposal off the ground. For starters, Cohen would need approval from state politicians and regulators, including New York Governor Kathy Hochul. Since the project would be on what is now parkland, Hochul would need to approve a commercial development, according to the Post.
That approval might be slightly more difficult for Cohen to get because, in 2014, his hedge fund SAC was forced to pay a $1.8 billion fine stemming from fraud charges.
If Metropolitan Park is built, it would be near quite a few other major sports hot spots in the city. It would be surrounded by Flushing Meadows-Corona Park, the home of the US Open, as well as a new stadium for New York FC.
