Associated Press February 17, 2005

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

Giants invite Jets to share stadium

February 16, 2005, 4:49 PM EST

The New York Jets, whose plan for a new stadium in Manhattan now has competition, are welcome to be partners in a new stadium that the New York Giants want to build, the chairman of the New Jersey Sports & Exposition Authority said Wednesday.

"They are welcome to be owners and partners in the new facility," authority Chairman Carl Goldberg told fellow commissioners at their regular monthly meeting.

Both teams now play at Giants Stadium in the Meadowlands, and Goldberg said officials are committed to building a new facility "that would welcome the Jets to stay here for the foreseeable future."

Over the last month, the Giants and the authority have moved closer to finalizing a deal on a new $700 million stadium, and negotiations with the Giants resumed after the meeting.

"The negotiations really resolved all the major economic issues," Goldberg said after Wednesday's talks with the Giants. "There are a couple technical issues remaining."

Goldberg, who has been instructed by acting Gov. Richard J. Codey to pursue a deal with the Giants, declined to give specifics. The Jets had no immediate comment regarding Goldberg's remarks.

John Mara, the Giants executive vice president and chief negotiator on the stadium project, said through a spokesman, "We continue to make good progress. We feel like we're closing in on an agreement. And we feel optimistic that we will be able to conclude these negotiations within the next week."

Mara said they were "fully supportive" of the Jets' efforts to build the West Side Stadium.

"If in the future the circumstances would dictate a conversation about them playing in Giants Stadium or a new building, we would be receptive to that conversation, and we would welcome them, just as we did in 1984."

The Jets, who met with Codey on Feb. 9, have maintained their goal is to build a new $1.6 billion stadium of their own over rail yards on the West Side of Manhattan. A new obstacle, however, emerged Tuesday, when the Metropolitan Transportation Authority said it would entertain other offers besides the Jets for development rights to the property.

A major issue in talks with the Giants has been whether Xanadu, a $1.3 billion shopping and entertainment venue that is to be built at the sports complex, would be open on football Sundays. The Giants have said they are concerned that their fans would have trouble parking if Xanadu was open on game days.

The Mills Corp. of Virginia and Cranford-based Mack-Cali Realty are developing Xanadu, which is to include an indoor ski slope, hotel, office towers and dozens of upscale stores.

In a related matter, the authority soon will begin negotiations with a minor league baseball team, the Bergen Cliff Hawks of the Independent league, regarding a stadium that would be part of the Xanadu complex, Goldberg said.

The Giants want to replace their existing 28-year-old stadium, one of the oldest in the league, to reap more revenue from luxury boxes and concessions and to add premium club seating.

Besides the Jets, other sports tenants of the Meadowlands complex also are planning to leave. The new owner of the New Jersey Nets, who play at Continental Airlines Arena, plans to build an arena in Brooklyn, N.Y., and the New Jersey Devils are planning a move from the arena to a new venue in downtown Newark.

The other Meadowlands professional team, the MetroStars of Major League Soccer, could have a deal with the sports authority next month. Goldberg said the joint venture would build the team a stadium in Harrison, a town next to Newark.