Ronkonkoma arena developers get second extension for updated plans
The developers of a proposed $1 billion mixed-use arena complex in Ronkonkoma have received a second extension on a deadline to submit updated plans to the county, according to Suffolk County spokesman Jason Elan.
The project, located next to the Ronkonkoma train station, is calling for a 7,500-seat hockey arena, 6,000-seat outdoor stadium, convention center, 300-room hotel and office and retail space. The plans are due in April.
The development group, led by Chicago-based Jones Lang LaSalle, has been studying the feasibility of its original proposal for more than a year and was scheduled to provide its latest plans for the 40-acre parcel last month. The plans originally were due in August but the group requested an extension.
The group asked the county last month for a second extension on their submission deadline “to further advance the progress it has made toward building a knowledge-based, technology-focused healthcare and life sciences growth economy for the future of Long Island,” according to John Cameron of Woodbury-based Cameron Engineering & Associates.
Elan said the county is not concerned over the delays in receiving the developers’ updated proposal. “We are excited for the anticipated submission,” Elan said.
The county selected the original proposal by the Jones Lang LaSalle group over three competing developers in April 2018 in response to its request for qualifications regarding the development of county land between MacArthur Airport and the Ronkonkoma LIRR station.
At the time the group’s plans centered around a 17,500-seat hockey arena designed to lure a professional hockey team to Ronkonkoma.
In March 2019, the group said it had reduced the size of the hockey arena to 7,500, added an outdoor 6,000-seat stadium and retained former Islanders and Rangers player Pat LaFontaine in an effort to recruit men’s and women’s teams from the professional and collegiate ranks to play hockey, soccer and lacrosse at the site.
The plans for the project, which includes a 7,500-seat hockey arena and 6,000-seat outdoor stadium, are now due in April.
Jim Baumbach is an award-winning investigative reporter at Newsday, where he has worked since 1998. He spent two decades in the sports department, where he covered every professional team and league, including events such as the Super Bowl and World Series.
