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Jets may become "New York" team again
http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=1766720
Quote:
ESPN.com news services
NEW YORK -- The New York Jets are close to a deal for a $1.4 billion stadium on Manhattan's West Side.
A source close to the negotiations, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said Tuesday the deal, which faces opposition from many neighborhood residents, could be announced within a week.
A source told ESPN.com's Len Pasquarelli that the announcement could come as early as Thursday.
The proposal also would expand the nearby Jacob K. Javits Convention Center.
The Jets would spend $800 million on the stadium. The city and state would spend $600 million on a deck over the existing rail yards and a roof that would allow the stadium to be used as convention space.
The plan would be partly financed by an increase in the city's hotel tax. Portions of the plan would need the approval of the state Legislature.
The stadium proposal faces stiff opposition from neighborhood activists and elected officials representing the West Side, which consists mainly of warehouses, auto body shops and old rail yards. They charge that the $600 million subsidy would be a sweetheart deal for the Jets.
But an added reason for the stadium is that city officials think it could enhance New York's bid to attract the 2012 Summer Olympics.
The Jets currently play at Giants Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J. They share the stadium with the New York Giants. The Jets' lease is up in 2008.
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Maybe the Yankees and Mets should take a look at this for how to go about getting new stadiums. Public money is paying for less then half of the stadium cost.
Time to get those "New York" football teams back into New York.
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"Final thought: I just rented Michael Moore's Bowling for Columbine. Frankly, it was the worst sports movie I've ever seen."
--Peter Schmuck, The (Baltimore) Sun
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