By Joshua Burd
Construction could resume at the stalled American Dream Meadowlands site in the coming weeks, now that efforts to finance the massive project appear to be back on track.
Tony Armlin, an executive with developer Triple Five, told The Record that crews could return to the East Rutherford site in conjunction with finalizing a $1.15 billion bond sale by the end of September. He spoke Thursday after a board meeting of the New Jersey Sports & Exposition Authority, which voted to approve minor amendments to the bond sale.
Construction at the sprawling retail and entertainment complex has been stalled for nearly a year, despite efforts by Triple Five to get it back on track after taking over the site in 2010. It was the latest delay in the long, tortured history of the project formerly known as Xanadu, which was first approved by the sports authority in 2003 but languished for the ensuing decade.
The $1.15 billion bond sale includes roughly $800 million in bonds tied to a payment-in-lieu-of-taxes agreement between Triple Five and the borough of East Rutherford, along with $350 million tied to a state tax incentive, according to The Record. Thursday’s approval by the NJSEA allows Triple Five to have the bonds issued through a Wisconsin financing agency, which state officials say would serve as the conduit and eliminate the risk to New Jersey taxpayers.
The vote came over the objections of opponents such as the nonprofit New Jersey Alliance for Fiscal Integrity.
For more, see Thursday’s story in The Record.
