A Different Vision for the Citi Field Parking Lot

State Senator Jessica Ramos has apparently asked around, and her constituents are not happy. The casino that Mets owner Steve Cohen wants to put on the Citi Field parking lot as part of his Metropolitan Park plan -- which would require a state act to alienate (i.e. eliminate) parkland -- doesn't track with Corona's, East Elmhurst's and Jackson Heights' definition of a good neighbor. And so on May 28, Senator Ramos voiced her opposition to Cohen's casino, introducing legislation to prohibit one from being built.

Metropolitan Park is not dead, strictly speaking, but the odds of it happening have gone down significantly. Cohen has essentially said no casino, no park improvements -- that the casino essentially makes the project economically viable.

Let's put aside the notion that someone who bought a baseball team for $2.4 billion and who saw his net worth increase by $2.3 billion over the past year to $19.7 billion has decided that he doesn't have quite enough money. Checkered though his past is, Cohen has, in all fairness, donated somewhere north of a billion dollars to philanthropic causes over his life, so he clearly has some impulse towards the public good.

Let's continue along that line for a bit, and see what can be done with this parking lot once maximizing profits isn't a factor. I submitted the above concept around a year and a half ago at a Citi Field open house. I don't claim perfection --It's merely one guy's effort to create a fun, productive public space that serves the people of New York City. Two principles drove it: 1) create a year-round destination, and 2) expand park opportunities not just in the parking lot, but in Flushing Meadows-Corona Park. Anyone who visits Flushing Meadows Park on a rain-free weekend will tell you that it is very, very heavily utilized. However, the New York Hall of Science, the Queens Museum, and the Queens Night Market take up badly-needed recreation space in the park, and are all a bit of a walk from the 7 train. It would be great if all three of them were easier to get to. They deserve more visitors. And it would also be great for Flushing Meadows Park to have more recreation space. It's badly needed.

This plan accomplishes these aims, but before any of it gets built, the entire parking lot would need to be elevated by 8 feet with clean fill. The seas are rising, and this is low-lying land. It would be political and topographical malpractice not to raise the whole lot's grade.

Once that happens, here's where everything would go, working roughly clockwise from south to north:

-- Parking Lot G: A new four-story building directly attached to Citi Field would house the New York Hall of Science and the Queens Museum. This seems like a win-win for everyone. The Mets and/or the museums could issue combo tickets for game days and other events (sorry there drunky, no beer in the museums), while the museums would benefit from easy subway access on days that the stadium goes dark. Major League Baseball could even co-program exhibits with the Hall of Science: How does a curveball work? What does conditioning (and more grimly, PEDs) do to an athlete? Baseball offers a lot of potentially engaging exhibits.

-- Lot F: A new, permanent home for the Queens Night Market. This two-story structure with a canopied third level open from April thru November would house the current Night Market tenants. A service corridor would lie north of the building for deliveries, connecting to a new stub-ended 118 Street that would access Roosevelt Avenue.

-- Lot E: Cricket grounds. Makeshift cricket grounds can be found in parks and playgrounds all around the City, but here's a chance to really adapt to the the massive influx of New Yorkers from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, the West Indies, and everyone else who plays the game. A real cricket grounds also sends an important message to its emigrant fans: You're a part of this City. We hear you and see you and want you to feel welcome here.

-- Lot E: Volleyball zone. It's volleyball! There's a ball! And a net! This area would have lots of nets! Some would have sand surfaces, and others would use that spongy material that's catching on in a lot of play areas. Fun! A concessionaire or two nestled between the cricket and volleyball areas could sell snacks and drinks.

-- Lot D: Batting cages. This seems like such a natural activity around a baseball stadium that I'm shocked that it isn't more common. Maybe the cages can be programmed to replicate the pitching styles of famous Mets past and present. You think you could handle a fastball from Dwight Gooden in his prime? OK, big shot, here's your chance to try.

--Shea Road would be shifted north and west to more closely hug the Grand Central Parkway and Northern Boulevard, freeing up extra space for the Cricket grounds, volleyball zone and ...

-- Lot C/former Bus Lot: A two-story parking facility accessed from the north, capped by a gently undulating green roof 30 to 70 feet above grade. This passive parkland would include shade trees, and would be for picnicking, people-watching, and quietly contemplating the mysteries of life: Are we alone in the universe? Is my cat trying to murder me? Why is my dentist trying to constantly sell me on teeth-whitening?

-- Bus Parking and MTA bus loop: This two-story structure would be connected at roof level to the main parking facility, and could include a continuation of the green roof parkland treatment. A couple of bus bays would be set aside for any MTA routes to use, while the interior would be devoted to charter and tour bus parking.

-- A four- to six-story hotel with ground-floor seasonal retail would parallel Citi Field on its third base side, separated from the stadium by a new pedestrian promenade dubbed 120 Street. (Delivery vehicles would be allowed on the promenade during off hours.) The retail areas could be occupied by several of the craft booths and non-food vendors now lining the Night Market's western flank.

-- Lot A: A semienclosed, all-weather miniature golf course would go north of left field, separated from the stadium by a new pedestrian-only 35 Avenue. A lot of fun can be had here by periodically changing the course's theme: Maybe it can be a baseball theme for 6 months, followed by a LaGuardia Airport theme, followed by a theme devoted to Dragon Boat races, or food carts. This would keep the attraction fresh -- and keep paying customers coming back.

-- Lot A: new Olmsted Center. Finally, another part of Flushing Meadows-Corona Park can be freed up for recreation by relocating the current Parks Department offices to a new four-story building -- a nice one, with an atrium and terraces and a giant illuminated head of Robert Moses on the roof that comes out of a big hat every time congestion pricing is cancelled. And shoots lightning bolts out of its eyes. (Just joking about that last part. Maybe.)

So that's the plan. Steve, if you're reading this -- and i know you are -- this is only one of many concepts floated during public outreach, and there are probably many others that your team has vetted that are more detailed and better thought-out. But you're 67. Time stops for no one. You'll in all likelihood make the money back within a year that you could spend transforming the Citi Field lot into a great public benefit. But what you do here will far outlive you, and that's what you'll be most remembered for.

This article is a personal opinion, and does not reflect the positions of any of my employers, past or present.