The New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority today approved a proposal to expand the American Dream project to include an indoor amusement park and water park. The decision has been years in the making. The project was originally called Xanadu and the Jets and the Giants NFL teams have opposed the project, claiming the scope has expanded beyond an agreement. New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority President and CEO Wayne Hasenbalg told NJ Today Managing Editor Mike Schneider that the expansion will be good for the project and he hopes the constant dialogue with the NFL teams will prevent future lawsuits that could slow or stop progress on American Dream.
Hasenbalg called today’s decision an important one for the state. He said there have been years of review and thousands of pages of documents. “We finally got to the point where we knew we were confident that the recommendation we were going to make was a good one,” he said.
Almost 600,000 square feet will be added to the project to include an indoor theme park and water park. “DreamWorks is going to theme the amusement park, their first ever. So I think that kind of tells you what’s envisioned here,” Hasenbalg said. “When you add these new components to the existing plans for the mall area, yeah there’s gonna be no place like it, maybe in the world.”
Financing has been a major question surrounding the American Dream project. According to Hasenbalg, the Sports Authority has set the stage to allow the developer, Triple Five, to apply for financing through governmental agencies and help the company get private funding, which he said will comprise the bulk of the money.
“I think with what we did today, you’re gonna see shovels in the ground in just a few weeks,” Hasenbalg said.
The Jets and the Giants filed a lawsuit to stop the American Dream project last June. The courts decided that the NFL teams had to wait until the Sports Authority gave final approval to the developers. When asked if he believes the teams will sue again now, Hasenbalg said while he hasn’t been told that they won’t, he’s optimistic that an agreement can be made without the judicial system.
“Both football teams — the Jets and the Giants — have been such an important part and tradition of the Meadowlands. We have dialogue with them every day. And my hope is that that dialogue will continue. I think it has to continue,” Hasenbalg said. “We’re hopeful that when we have this ongoing dialogue, at the end of the day we’re gonna reach an agreement that’s good for everybody.”
If the teams decide to sue again, Hasenbalg said it could hurt Triple Five’s ability to get necessary financing. “But it depends what kind of action and how it’s filed and what the outcomes in the judicial branch will be,” he said.
When asked how quickly American Dream could be open if all goes well, Hasenbalg said that’s up to Triple Five, but the upcoming Super Bowl is a consideration. “I’m really hopeful that potentially at least part of American Dream might be available for use during the Super Bowl,” he said.