Jim Kirkos wasn’t holding back. “We are on the precipice of providing the Meadowlands Sports Complex with an asset that will propel economic growth in the region the same way The Big M and Giants Stadium did in the 1970s,” said Kirkos, who is president and CEO of the Meadowlands Chamber of Commerce and its Convention & Visitors Bureau and serves as executive director of the Meadowlands 2040 Foundation.

That asset is a proposed Meadowlands Convention Center complex. Earlier this month, Kirkos and other stakeholders unveiled an economic impact study and outlined the project during mDest23! A Thought Leaders Conference. The 2040 Foundation was established as an economic development research and awareness arm of the chamber, which produces a number of vision documents that the chamber then pursues. “We don’t get to make any decisions. We only get to try to influence and plant the seeds,” Kirkos said. “And that’s what today is all about.”

Kirkos added that several years ago, when his organization issued its first vision document about a potential convention center, local officials heard that it was a great idea and got some pats on the back, but nothing was done. “Not one person said we were out of our minds, it wasn’t a good idea,” said Kirkos. “But yet we didn’t advance it.”

He said he realized for the project to be taken seriously the 2040 Foundation needed to have more than just a great idea, something that could be backed up with data and firm plans.

That is what inspired the decision to formally study the feasibility and impact of a Meadowlands Convention Center complex that would replace the Izod Center, which closed in 2015, and is currently being used for film production. That arena site, along with the rest of the sports complex is owned by the New Jersey Sports & Exposition Authority.

Since 2021, the Meadowlands 2040 Foundation has been working with Hunden Strategy Partners, a Chicago-based real estate advisory firm, to first advance a Phase One Market Analysis and now this Phase Two Economic Impact Analysis. The study was funded through a $50,000 grant from the New Jersey Economic Development Authority, which was endorsed by the NJSEA, a key requirement for securing that grant.

As Kirkos laid out the scenario during mDest23!, he recalled the opening of the Meadowlands Sports Complex, which he said was once the envy of the world. “It powered the regional economy for 25 to 30 years, until it didn’t,” he said, as he outlined some of its history and the thinking before the American Dream megamall became a reality. “I think you’ll all agree that we didn’t want to just have this once-amazing sports and entertainment complex relegated to a stadium, and that’s it. So that’s when the visioning process came into play, both at the chamber and the foundation, and we started to elevate where we would go.”

He prefaced the study presentation by saying that the project is big, bold and expensive—but harkened back to the decisions those public officials had to make back in the 1970s in creating the Meadowlands. “I am certain that the cost to build the original Meadowlands Sports Complex was daunting,” said Kirkos. “And this may seem daunting, but we can do this. We’ve proven before that we can.”

The estimated price tag for the proposed facility would be between approximately $1 billion and $1.6 billion. The convention center would be a 460,000-square-foot facility that includes 300,000 square feet of flexible exhibit space, 100,000 square feet of meeting rooms, and a 60,000-square-foot ballroom. The plan also calls for a 1,000-room headquarters hotel and two other privately developed hotels that could bring the total project price cost to more than $2 billion.

Over 30 years, the study estimates that the project will generate more than $3.5 billion in tax revenue and generate more than $30 billion in spending. The study also projects that the new complex would create an average of more than 6,000 full-time equivalent jobs while the construction is expected to support nearly 17,500 full-time construction jobs.

Rob Hunden, president and CEO of Hunden Strategic Partners, began his presentation of the 181-page study by stressing the project’s potential. “We don’t cheerlead projects, but we’ve never been associated with a new-built convention center idea that had more merit than what we are looking at here in the Meadowlands,” he said.

In laying out the upside of the project, Hunden pointed to MetLife Stadium, American Dream, and Meadowlands Racetrack, which houses the No. 1 harness racetrack in North America and the No. 1 live sportsbook in the United States, all already operating at the site. He said that the strengths and opportunities outweigh the weaknesses and threats, stressing the positive destination attributes.

“A Meadowlands Convention and Events Center, which would be multi-purpose, would be a super-regional and national player in almost event type. These are not one-trick ponies. These are facilities that are multipurpose, and they’re designed to be flexible and in transition for every kind of use,” Hunden explained.

He said that the facility could be used for everything from conventions to corporate events and training and trade shows to graduations and youth sports and would facilitate fan experiences and gatherings for marquee events such as the World Cup in 2026, as well as a potential Final Four, or maybe even another Super Bowl.

Jockeying with Javits

Hunden pointed out that it would fill a real need for the North Jersey and New York City metropolitan area with the Javits Center already more than overbooked. “If you want to have any sort of sizeable event, you’re simply out of luck if you want to be in the largest market in North America,” said Hunden. “For consumer shows, which are generally drive-in from within 50 miles, it will be a metro regional player. And there is nothing here in terms of anything over 60,000 square feet, which most consumer shows are much, much bigger than. There’s simply nothing here. And so that demand is going elsewhere.”

Simply put, Hunden said that the area is severely underserved. “The opportunity is right here,” he said. “You have the success factors that multi-use convention centers want, and meeting planners and event planners look for. They look for easy access to a large market because they need their people, who are part of their group, to want to go there and spend time. And it has to be easy for them to get there. So, you’ve got multiple airports and amazing highway access and a strong geographic location. And, of course, you’ve got the destination appeal of everything they can do right here on site.”

The analysis estimates a cost savings anywhere between 50% and 75% for having an event at the Meadowlands versus New York City. And Hunden added that, out of the pandemic, planners are trending away from some events in big, urban centers, and that there is growing demand for these types of multi-use facilities where everything is connected and safe with meals, entertainment, family attractions, hotels and more all on site.

Building the convention center would also give an advantage to the Meadowlands versus facilities designed and built decades ago that are not equipped to handle some of the modern demands of conventions and trade shows, especially for high-spending industries that require breakout meeting rooms and a certain amount of ballroom space that many facilities simply cannot accommodate. “So, we’re designing this to have that perfect mix so that you can be the hub for all of these higher-end events,” said Hunden.

The study estimates some 300 event dates and 650,000 visitors per year, generating an average of $1 billion in net new spending annually over 30 years. “There is a defined market that is clearly underserved,” Hunden concluded. “You’re using an underperforming site, clearly, that has an obsolete building on it unfortunately. But that sets up a great opportunity to sort of seize the day, right? You have a need to stimulate long-term sustainable growth and economic vitality in this region.”

He stressed that, spearheaded by American Dream’s offerings, this site has all of the amenities other cities are begging to have attached to their convention centers, but cannot bring together.

“You’ve already got the other legs in a stool,” said Hunden. “So now you just need to bring the engine.”

Kirkos called it the right size facility in the right location on land with a building that’s already shuttered and underperforming. “We didn’t overdesign it. We didn’t overbuild it,” Kirkos explained. “We picked a multi-use focused venue complex so that it can have the most reliability of success, bringing in all types of events. We’re setting this up for success, and we’re setting it up for that $30 billion-plus economic impact.”

Kirkos added that he and other proponents believe that figure is just the tip of the iceberg because of the subsequent redevelopment and projects something of this scale could spur, and the trickle-down effect in the community.

To become a reality, though, the project must receive political buy-in, especially in terms of funding.

“The next use for the findings is to compel the state to immediately advance the process of establishing an organization and funding process that responds to the market demand opportunity the study reveals,” said Kirkos.

A spokesperson for Gov. Phil Murphy said the office could not comment on the proposal until a review is completed. “The Meadowlands Complex continues to serve as a crucial economic driver and attraction for New Jersey residents and visitors alike,” said Deputy Press Secretary Bailey Lawrence.