Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr., Mayor Michael Bloomberg, City Council Member Fernando Cabrera, along with others joined New York Rangers' legend Mark Messier and Olympic gold medalist Sarah Hughes to announce the selection of the Kingsbridge National Ice Center as the next tenant of the Kingsbridge Armory.
"This is a fantastic project, one that will bring living wage jobs and new recreation opportunities to the northwest Bronx while completely transforming a long-vacant space into a new amenity that will complement the surrounding community," said Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr. "This project shows the tremendous opportunity the Bronx has to offer, and I am proud to have helped move the redevelopment of the Kingsbridge Armory forward."
Check out this video of last week's news conference:
Kingsbridge Armory Announcment
KNIC will feature nine year-round indoor regulation size ice rinks, including a feature rink that can seat approximately 5,000 people and be used to host national and international ice hockey tournaments, figure and speed skating competitions and ice shows. The project will also include 50,000 square feet of space designated for community uses. It is expected that KNIC will draw more than 2 million visitors a year, vastly increasing the options of ice facilities in New York City, where there are currently only seven year-round ice rinks, none of which are located in the Bronx. The project represents a private investment of $275 million, which will generate 890 construction jobs and 267 permanent jobs.
Check out some of last week's media coverage on the KNIC announcement:
City & State, Winners & Losers, April 26, 2013--"If you would have told us five years ago that you could go figure skating or play some hockey at a world class ice rink complex in the Bronx, we would have put you in the penalty box. But Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr. fought off Related's plan to rezone the Kingsbridge Armory for commercial purposes and put forward a vision instead to turn the site into the world's largest indoor ice skating center." http://bit.ly/12csQen
NY1--Borough President Diaz appeared on "Road to City Hall" last Tuesday to discuss the project with anchor Errol Louis. Check it out here: http://bit.ly/18eVpeu
Daily News--"The Bronx is going to be the home to the single greatest ice center in the world," Diaz said. "As Mayor Bloomberg said yesterday, stores can go anywhere, retail can go anywhere. But how often do we have a chance to build such an amazing project?" http://nydn.us/Y8J0Yf
Gothamist--Renderings: Kingsbridge Armory Will Be "World's Largest Indoor Ice Facility http://bit.ly/11QA8Y7
El Diario--Proyecto urbanístico le cambiará la cara a El Bronx