Opponents of a proposed $1.4 billion football stadium on the West Side of Manhattan filed two lawsuits Wednesday saying that a crucial environmental impact study intended to pave the way for the project was created with flawed information.
The stadium is essential to New York’s bid for the 2012 Summer Olympic Games and expansion of the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center.
The lawsuits, which challenge the stadium on environmental grounds, could succeed in thwarting the plan, reports the New York Times, if they manage to delay construction for a significant period.
Stadium opponents said they hoped that the litigation would push back the beginning of construction until July 6, when they expect the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to skip over New York and select Paris, the frontrunner, as host of the 2012 Games. Opponents predict that the stadium effort will then lose momentum and die said the newspaper.
New York Mayor Michel Bloomberg has said New York would not win the 2012 bid without the stadium. City officials have said they expect to defeat any legal challenge to what they have described as one of the most rigorous environment reviews in city history.
The Jets and their supporters say they are confident of winning in court, whether victory comes before or after the IOC meeting in July.
