Shea Olympics battle

BY OREN YANIV
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER
Tuesday, February 22nd, 2005

When members of the International Olympic Committee review the city's bid for the 2012 Olympiad this week, they will also receive an alternative proposal - one that puts Queens at the epicenter of the Summer Games.

The Queens Olympic Committee, a grass-roots organization headed by Forest Hills activist David Oats, is pushing to scratch the plans for a controversial West Side stadium in favor of using a revamped Shea Stadium as the Olympics' main stage.

"We say, yes, we want [the Olympics] in our backyard," he said, even as he conceded that his pitch is "a long shot."

After arriving in the city over the weekend, the 13 members of the IOC evaluation commission received three-page letters promoting the Shea Stadium idea. Oats and his group also hope to meet with delegation members when they visit Flushing, where other Olympic facilities are planned.

"New York still has time to reverse its present collision course to failure," states the letter to the IOC, "and go withthe plan that will win ourcity the gold."

NYC 2012 officials have said in the past that the Flushing Meadows-Corona Park area is the backup site for the Olympic stadium. But Deputy Mayor Daniel Doctoroff, who leads the city's bid committee, has said New York stands no chance to win the bid without a Manhattan stadium.

New York is considered the current runnerup to host the 2012 Games, with Paris being the favorite. London, Madrid and Moscow are also vying to land the honor when the 117-member IOC votes July 6.

The city had put the proposed West Side stadium, which also would be home tothe NFL's New York Jets, at the heart of its proposal. But the plan has been facing mounting opposition from local residents, elected officials and many pundits.

The situation became even more complicated when Cablevision recently entered the bidding process for the site, calling the entire project into question.

Oats said the West Side stadium plan is "as dead as a doornail," adding that the controversy might doom the entire Olympic dream.

The Queens committee's proposal calls for expanding Shea Stadium to 85,000 seats and topping it with a dome. Alternatively, a new stadium can be built on a site adjacent to the Flushing stadium.

Unlike Manhattan's West Side, the area is easily accessible by highways and mass transit. And construction costs would be much less in Queens.

Oats was involved with New York's last attempt to host the Olympics, in 1984. Shea was the proposed Olympic stadium in that bid, but the city ultimately lost to Los Angeles because of the 1970s fiscal crisis, Oats said.

He conceded that his efforts, which openly criticize the current proposal, may damage the city's chances. But he insisted that this is ultimately the fault of the mayor and his deputies.

"The city has undermined its own chances," he said. "We're trying to knock some sense into it."