It was attended by New York state governor Andrew Cuomo, NHL commissioner Gary Bettman, and officials, alumni, and current players from the Islanders. On September 23, 2019, the groundbreaking for the arena was held. In the meantime, the Islanders began to gradually play more home games at the Coliseum in the 2018–19 season. The new arena was projected to be completed in time for the 2021–22 NHL season. In December 2017, New York Arena Partners-a joint venture between the Islanders, Oak View Group, and Sterling Equities, won a bid to construct a new, 18,000-seat arena and mixed-use district at Belmont Park, beating a competing proposal by New York City FC for a new soccer stadium. UBS Arena under construction (December 2020) Īs Barclays Center was designed primarily as a basketball arena, its hockey configuration was criticized by fans for having seats with obstructed views, while its ice quality was criticized as substandard by players. Meanwhile, a group led by Bruce Ratner (who had developed Barclays Center) secured an $89 million bid to renovate the Coliseum, aiming to host a minor hockey team as its main tenant, and have six Islanders games played there per-season. In October 2012, the Islanders announced that they would re-locate to Barclays Center in Brooklyn once their lease of the Coliseum expired after the 2014–15 season. The plan was presented by Wang as a last-ditch effort to keep the Islanders in Nassau County. In August 2011, Nassau County voters voted against a referendum that would have granted a $400 million public bond to construct a $350 million arena and $50 million minor league ballpark. There were also reports that businessman Nelson Peltz wanted to buy the Islanders and move them to Barclays Center in Brooklyn. However, a source from Newsday indicated that the FanHouse report was not true. In June 2010, FanHouse reported that Jeff Wilpon and his father, then-Mets owner Fred Wilpon, had begun working with real estate firm Jones Lang LaSalle (who also worked on the renovation of Madison Square Garden) on a feasibility study of a new Islanders arena in Queens. From that point, the Lighthouse Project would no longer be pursued by Wang, Mangano and the developers. On July 12, 2010, Hempstead supervisor Kate Murray announced an "alternate zone" created for the Coliseum property, downsizing the original Lighthouse Project to half its proposed size and making the project, according to then-Nassau County Executive Ed Mangano and the developers, "economically unviable for both the developer and owner of the site". Wilpon also discussed the possibility of buying the Islanders. In May 2010, Jeff Wilpon, then COO of Major League Baseball's New York Mets, had discussions with then-Islanders owner Charles Wang about constructing a new arena for the Islanders in the Willets Point neighborhood of Queens, adjacent to the Mets' ballpark, Citi Field. While Nassau County approved a version of the Lighthouse Project, the town of Hempstead never granted a change in zoning that was required for its construction, and the project was reported to have been cancelled. Various attempts had been made to pursue a renovation or replacement of the aging facility, including the Lighthouse Project-a 2004 proposal to renovate the Coliseum and build a larger sport, entertainment, and residential district around it (including a minor-league ballpark and a 60-story high-rise from which the proposal derived its name). It was also the second-smallest arena in the league, with only MTS Centre in Winnipeg being smaller. The Nassau Coliseum was the second-oldest facility in the NHL, behind only the twice-renovated Madison Square Garden. History The Lighthouse Project and Barclays Center Fans and sports writers have affectionately nicknamed the arena "The Stable" due to the arena being located at Belmont Park, a famous thoroughbred racing venue. The arena officially seats 17,250 patrons for NHL games and up to 19,000 for concerts and other select events. Opened in 2021, it is the home of the New York Islanders of the National Hockey League (NHL), replacing the Nassau Coliseum and Barclays Center. UBS Arena is a multi-purpose indoor arena located within Belmont Park in Elmont, New York, United States, directly adjacent to the New York City limits. (a joint venture of the New York Islanders, Oak View Group, and Sterling Equities)
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