Venue News & Notes: A Stadium in a New York Minute

They say everything in New York moves fast, but that generally does not include construction. The New York Giants and Jets, however, have proved that it does: their new shared stadium is ahead of its construction schedule. The $1.6 billion facility, set to open in 2010, may be finished by the end of the year; its final steel beam was placed this week.

Construction on a new National Football League stadium for the New York Giants and Jets is four months ahead of schedule and may be completed by December. Work on the $1.6 billion stadium has gone smoothly, and a rail link to the Meadowlands sports complex in East Rutherford, NJ, will be done before the next football season, Mark Lamping, chief executive of the teams’ joint stadium corporation, said this week at a ceremony marking the placement of the structure’s final steel beam…

…The chairman of the Jackson County Sports Complex Authority is crying foul after Kansas City Mayor Mark Funkhouser proposed ending a city subsidy. Authority chief Mike Smith said in a release that curtailing Kansas City’s $2 million annual payment would ignore a commitment to Arrowhead and Kauffman stadiums made by the previous mayor and City Council. The county uses the payment to meet a $7 million subsidy to the Kansas City Chiefs and Kansas City Royals as part of the teams’ leases…

…The Pro Bowl is going back to Hawaii. The Hawaii Tourism Authority board voted 9-1 to accept the NFL’s offer to return to the islands. The board rejected two previous proposals but, under mounting pressure, reconsidered its latest refusal to pay the NFL $4 million a year to host the all-star game at Aloha Stadium in 2011 and 2012. The 2010 Pro Bowl will be played in Miami a week before the Super Bowl after a 30-year run in Hawaii in which every game was a sellout…

…The new Dallas Cowboys Stadium has its first sporting event booked: a soccer game. The $1.1 billion stadium in Arlington, TX, will host a quarterfinal match for the CONCACAF Gold Cup on July 19. Twelve countries will take part in the tournament, with the top two teams from four groups and the two best third-place teams advancing to the quarterfinals. Houston’s Reliant Stadium also will host CONCACAF, for a double-header on July 9. A record 13 U.S. venues will host the 10th edition of the most prestigious soccer tournament in the region…

…Portland, OR, Timbers and Beavers owner Merritt Paulson and city leaders this week reached a tentative agreement that would give him access to more than $60 million in city-backed loans to build a Triple A baseball stadium in the Rose Quarter and renovate PGE Park for a new Major League Soccer franchise…

…Revenue from three taxes that would pay for the bulk of construction of the proposed $630 million stadium for the Florida Marlins fell by an average of 19.1% in February, raising more questions about the city of Miami and Miami-Dade County’s ability to finance the stadium. Convention tax revenue was down by 14.15%, and both tourist and sports tax revenues were down 21.55%, according to county records…

…The Indiana Pacers, who have lost money nine of the past 10 years, say they can no longer afford the expense of operating Conseco Fieldhouse. The city board that owns the facility can’t cover the costs either and may be forced to seek taxpayer relief. The National Basketball Association’s Pacers have paid $13 million-$15 million a season to operate Conseco Fieldhouse as part of a 20-year lease with the city’s Capital Improvement Board…

…As part of a business expense to land the 2013 Super Bowl, the Arizona Sports and Tourism Authority unanimously agreed this week to give the NFL nearly $4.4 million to bring the title game back to University of Phoenix Stadium. The money will come from sales taxes generated from tickets, merchandise, and concessions on game day and from the NFL Experience, a carnival-like event for fans. Surrendering that income has become common in Super Bowl bids, according to sports-authority officials.