(Dec. 12, 2005) -- The cost of the new football stadium the New York Giants and New York Jets will jointly build in the Meadowlands likely will top $1 billion.
Owners of both teams filed preliminary site plans Dec. 12 for the new 81,000-seat stadium, to be built between the existing Giants Stadium and the Meadowlands Racetrack. The teams are still working on design details, and they have yet to determine whether a retractable roof will be part of the plan.
The stadium, which will be paid for by the teams, is the first in NFL history to be jointly built by two franchises, and is due to open for the 2010 season. Both teams currently use Giants Stadium.
The new stadium will be served by a New Jersey Transit rail station connected to a transfer station, potentially bringing 10,000 fans per hour into the stadium by train.
The state is not contributing to the cost of the stadium, but is kicking in about $225 million worth of infrastructure improvements, including building a rail station and paying for road upgrades within the sports complex and on nearby roads.
"A year ago, everyone said this deal was impossible to get," said acting Gov. Richard Codey. "Today, without question, New Jersey taxpayers have the best deal in NFL history."
In September, both teams announced plans to build the stadium together after the Jets' plans for a stadium on Manhattan's West Side failed. The Giants had been planning to build a stadium by themselves.
But a stadium to be used jointly has opened up a host of concerns, including providing equal facilities to keep both teams happy.
The Giants will have their practice facility onsite, while the Jets will locate theirs somewhere else in New Jersey. Jets president Jay Cross said the team has scouted 30 to 40 potential sites, and hopes to narrow them down soon. The Jets currently train on Long Island.
The projected cost of the stadium has risen since September, when it was estimated at $800 million.
"We hope it's not too far north of a billion, but it's not too far away," Cross said.
The preliminary plans call for an atrium consisting of a Football Hall of Fame, team stores for the Jets and Giants, football-themed dining, and conference space. It also envisions a future retail component of more than 500,000 square feet south of the stadium that would link it and the $1.3 billion Xanadu retail-entertainment complex that's already under construction nearby.
The teams hope to file a final master plan next year and begin construction in 2007.
