NY Islanders break ground on new arena at Belmont Park
BELMONT, Nassau County (WABC) -- They officially broke ground Monday on the New York Islanders' new hockey arena at Belmont Park in Nassau County.
Construction has already started on the 19,000-seat arena, which is the centerpiece of the $1.3 billion Belmont Park Redevelopment.
The goal is to turn 43 acres of underutilized parking lots at Belmont Park into a premier sports and hospitality destination.
In addition to the arena, the complex will feature a 250-room hotel and 350,000 square feet of retail space.
WATCH: NY Islanders break ground on new arena
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo was on hand for Monday's groundbreaking.
He was joined by Nassau County and other officials, plus members of the Islanders administration, team and staff.
"The Islanders belong on Long Island - and today we start building the state-of-the-art home this team and their fans deserve while generating thousands of jobs and billions in economic activity for the region's economy," said Cuomo.
Jon Ledecky, New York Islanders Co-Owner, said, "We celebrate this historic day with our loyal fans and thank Governor Cuomo, who has championed the Belmont Park Arena project from the start. The Islanders also thank the elected officials and our community for their support in helping reach this franchise milestone."
The new arena is scheduled to be completed in time for the 2021 - 2022 hockey season.
The following games originally scheduled to take place at Barclays Center in Brooklyn have been moved to NYCB Live:
Sunday Oct. 6 7 p.m. vs. Winnipeg Jets
Tuesday Oct. 8 7 p.m. vs. Edmonton Oilers
Sunday Oct. 27 7 p.m. vs. Philadelphia Flyers
Thursday Jan. 2 7 p.m. vs. New Jersey Devils
Monday Jan. 6 7 p.m. vs. Colorado Avalanche
Thursday Jan. 16 7 p.m. vs. New York Rangers
Tuesday Feb. 25 7 p.m. vs. New York Rangers
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