Plan for Queens Park Flushed in Favor of Soccer Stadium

In the waning days of the Bloomberg era, environmental and social responsibility have given way to economic development and developer subsidy. Such is the case, at least, in Flushing Meadows-Corona Park, where a new soccer stadium is planned.

1 minute read

May 8, 2013, 5:00 AM PDT

By Jonathan Nettler @nettsj


Michael Powell looks at the plans for a Major League Soccer stadium being proposed for the middle of Queens's Flushing Meadows-Corona Park, in place of a five-year-old Strategic Framework Plan that envisioned an ecologically sensitive revamp of the long-neglected, but intensely used, park.

"[The plan] was handiwork of renowned landscape architects. They bow, repeatedly, toward the man for whom they labored: Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg. Their plan, they wrote, could become a 'premiere example' of his effort to 'make the city more sustainable and environmentally responsive,'" says Powell. "Their rhetoric was so 2008.

"Mr. Bloomberg, who has seeded several beautiful parks during his mayoralty, has found a new obsession: He wants to let Major League Soccer place a spaceship of a soccer stadium atop a mound of dirt near the core of Flushing Meadow Park," Powell explains. "In exchange for at least 10 acres of prime parkland, an expansion team’s proposed owner, an Abu Dhabi oil sheik, promises to build a stadium with his own money, which really is grand of him."

"So our curious world: Park advocates are advised to tug at the cuff of wealthy patrons rather than seek financing through the tax rolls. And an oil sheik can, with a straight face, lay claim to public land and get a bargain at that."

Monday, May 6, 2013 in The New York Times

Sweeping view of Portland, Oregon with Mt. Hood in background against sunset sky.

Oregon Passes Exemption to Urban Growth Boundary

Cities have a one-time chance to acquire new land for development in a bid to increase housing supply and affordability.

March 12, 2024 - Housing Wire

Aerial view of green roofs with plants in Sydney, Australia.

Where Urban Design Is Headed in 2024

A forecast of likely trends in urban design and architecture.

March 10, 2024 - Daily Journal of Commerce

Cobblestone street with streetcar line, row of vintage streetlights on left, and colorful restaurant and shop awnings on right on River Street in Savannah, Georgia.

Savannah: A City of Planning Contrasts

From a human-scales, plaza-anchored grid to suburban sprawl, the oldest planned city in the United States has seen wildly different development patterns.

March 12, 2024 - Strong Towns

Aerial View of Chuckanut Drive and the Blanchard Bridge in the Skagit Valley.

Washington Tribes Receive Resilience Funding

The 28 grants support projects including relocation efforts as coastal communities face the growing impacts of climate change.

March 18 - The Seattle Times

Historic buildings in downtown Los Angeles with large "Pan American Lofts" sign on side of building.

Adaptive Reuse Bills Introduced in California Assembly

The legislation would expand eligibility for economic incentives and let cities loosen regulations to allow for more building conversions.

March 18 - Beverly Press

View from above of swan-shaped paddleboats with lights on around artesian fountain in Echo Park Lake with downtown Los Angeles skylien in background at twilight.

LA's Top Parks, Ranked

TimeOut just released its list of the top 26 parks in the L.A. area, which is home to some of the best green spaces around.

March 18 - TimeOut

News from HUD User

HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research

Call for Speakers

Mpact Transit + Community

New Updates on PD&R Edge

HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research

Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools

This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.

Planning for Universal Design

Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.