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Parking At Giants Stadium


Maxman

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Xanadu's 'X' factor: Parking

Monday, May 16, 2005

By JOHN BRENNAN

STAFF WRITER

CARMINE GALASSO / THE RECORD

Workmen in a 15-foot hole laying the groundwork for a five-story parking garage to be built as part of the Xanadu project at the Meadowlands.

Gazing down from Continental Arena's roof at the hubbub below, Bob Richardson described the delicate dance that is the Xanadu construction project.

"This is a rather intricate chess game we're playing," making sure that sports fans and concertgoers still have somewhere to park their cars at the Meadowlands, said Richardson, vice president for Xanadu developer Mills Corp. "It's one of the most complicated projects we've ever tackled."

More than 100 construction workers and dozens of pieces of heavy equipment dot what once was a parking lot outside the arena's main entrance as work continues on the 2.2 million-square-foot entertainment and retail complex in East Rutherford. On the eastern side of the site, eight acres of former wetlands have been covered by soil that, in turn, will be paved over by late summer.

The challenge for Arlington, Va.-based Mills, best known for its outlet malls around the country, is ensuring that the number of parking spaces at the arena site doesn't fall below 4,000. That's the number guaranteed by the leases that the Giants, Jets, Nets and Devils signed with the New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority.

At the moment, hundreds of those spots have been turned into a fenced-off construction zone.

None of the teams is playing currently, but that will change in early August, when the Giants and Jets kick off preseason games at Giants Stadium across Route 120. But by the time the football fans return, the former wetlands will hold 1,000 parking spaces.

And by Nov. 15, the fenced-in area will hold a five-story, 2,500-space parking garage.

"That parking deck obviously is the linchpin to us getting this whole project going," Richardson said. "Once we complete that, we can sequentially take other parking out of service as we start to construct portions of the entertainment and retail complex."

Carl Goldberg, the sports authority chairman, said there is a second reason why building Xanadu is so challenging.

"Everyone has to be keenly aware of maintaining full access to the site at all times," Goldberg said. "So you can't, for example, at the end of a Friday, dig a sewer line without making sure that the roadway is back in service before the next event."

So when U-2 fans are descending on the arena for rock concerts Tuesday and Wednesday, the steady stream of trucks arriving and departing will cease for several hours. Some of the work inside the fenced-off area will continue, but only if it doesn't produce distracting noise.

Standing just outside a 15-foot-deep hole in the parking lot on Friday, senior project manager Mike Allegretta said that the last dozen of the nearly 1,300 piles to be driven for the parking garage may be completed as soon as today.

More than 12,000 piles will be driven on the arena site by the time Xanadu's first phase is complete, Richardson said.

The Xanadu parking garage is relatively simple to build, he added, because there is no drywall or air conditioning and very little tile flooring. The deck pieces are scheduled to arrive from Pennsylvania by late next month.

Commuters likely will first notice the parking deck once the pieces start getting put together in early July. The 85-foot-high structure will be nearly the height of Continental Arena.

"There are a series of structural elements that are erected like an Erector set," Richardson said.

Building other parts of Xanadu will be more challenging. Among them are a 26-screen, Egyptian-themed movie complex that will include one 60-foot-high outdoor screen.

Xanadu will consist of five segments - Sports, Children's Education, Entertainment, Food & Home and Fashion. A Ferris wheel and roller coaster will be among the entertainment elements of a project that critics insist is simply a camouflaged megamall.

The sports authority selected Xanadu in 2003. Since then, Hartz Mountain Industries, the borough of Carlstadt, the Giants, several environmental groups and the New Jersey Builders Association all have filed suit against the project. But so far, none has managed to block construction.

"Any concerns I ever might have had about [a judge stopping the project] are decreasing almost on a daily basis," Goldberg said.

Still, Goldberg knows there is no deal yet with the Giants under which the team will settle for parking-garage spaces - unsuitable for tailgating - in place of surface parking. The two sides have been meeting regularly for several weeks. The two sides also are talking about how to prevent gridlock on football Sundays.

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just another reason for them to raise the price of parking and more reason for me to trash the place

Good point. I have no problem leaving loads of trash behind with the amount they charge for parking. Insanity.

I can't wait until they move to NY and the parking prices are reasonable again. Oh snap.

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just another reason for them to raise the price of parking and more reason for me to trash the place

Good point. I have no problem leaving loads of trash behind with the amount they charge for parking. Insanity.

I can't wait until they move to NY and the parking prices are reasonable again. Oh snap.

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Hopefully we don't get NYC and we get a 10 year extension through 2018 in the Meadowlands. =D>

Then the Giants wil leave for their new stadium and the Jets will get their hand me downs, their left overs. Then we can finally see "Jets Stadium" painted on the outside as long as that blue paint doesn't shine through. Instead forging their own identity, the Jets would be the poor step sisters once again.

This is not going to happen, it has to be a ploy to jump start the process.

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Hopefully we don't get NYC and we get a 10 year extension through 2018 in the Meadowlands. =D>

Then the Giants wil leave for their new stadium and the Jets will get their hand me downs, their left overs. Then we can finally see "Jets Stadium" painted on the outside as long as that blue paint doesn't shine through. Instead forging their own identity, the Jets would be the poor step sisters once again.

This is not going to happen, it has to be a ploy to jump start the process.

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Ah, what's everybody complaining about? Most of the parking is being built over useless wetlands that are home to thousands of species of animals. I don't hear the animals complaining. I mean, where the hell are the Wood-Duck and the Snow Goose gonna tailgate? We get more parking, fewer mosquitos, and no wayward waterfowl begging for hot-dog rolls. Its a win-win, people.

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Ah, what's everybody complaining about? Most of the parking is being built over useless wetlands that are home to thousands of species of animals. I don't hear the animals complaining. I mean, where the hell are the Wood-Duck and the Snow Goose gonna tailgate? We get more parking, fewer mosquitos, and no wayward waterfowl begging for hot-dog rolls. Its a win-win, people.

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We get more parking, fewer mosquitos, and no wayward waterfowl begging for hot-dog rolls. Its a win-win, people.

You ever see the parking lot as everyone goes in? The birds are swarming waiting to make their kill.

Not normall birds. Landfill variety birds with 2 heads. SCARY!!!

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We get more parking, fewer mosquitos, and no wayward waterfowl begging for hot-dog rolls. Its a win-win, people.

You ever see the parking lot as everyone goes in? The birds are swarming waiting to make their kill.

Not normall birds. Landfill variety birds with 2 heads. SCARY!!!

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Me also in section 18 ,quick in ,quick out as far as the parking lot goes...

That is definitely a great lot. Right there if you come in off the Turnpike. Easy to get out of. Well worth the extra money!

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Me also in section 18 ,quick in ,quick out as far as the parking lot goes...

That is definitely a great lot. Right there if you come in off the Turnpike. Easy to get out of. Well worth the extra money!

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Ahh, so you want the Jets to remain in Giant's Stadium forever just because it's more convenient for you.

What a great fan you are. =D>

That is a good point. I have always said that I want the Jets to move to NYC even if it means I no longer go myself.

They need their own stadium. I put the needs of the team first! :lol:

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Ahh, so you want the Jets to remain in Giant's Stadium forever just because it's more convenient for you.

What a great fan you are. =D>

That is a good point. I have always said that I want the Jets to move to NYC even if it means I no longer go myself.

They need their own stadium. I put the needs of the team first! :lol:

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That is a good point. I have always said that I want the Jets to move to NYC even if it means I no longer go myself.

They need their own stadium. I put the needs of the team first! :lol:

Exactly!

Plus, I live in North Carolina, so it makes no difference whether they play in NJ or NYC. :lol:

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That is a good point. I have always said that I want the Jets to move to NYC even if it means I no longer go myself.

They need their own stadium. I put the needs of the team first! :lol:

Exactly!

Plus, I live in North Carolina, so it makes no difference whether they play in NJ or NYC. :lol:

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