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MILLS STARTS BUILDING MEADOWLANDS XANADU

BY SASCHA BRODSKY

Construction on the mammoth mixed-use Meadowlands Xanadu began in March. The project, going up at the Meadowlands Sports Complex in Bergen County, N.J., near New York City, had been awaiting final approval from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, which will oversee the handling of the wetlands surrounding the site.

The Mills Corp. and Mack-Cali Realty Corp., the developers of the 4.8 million-square-foot entertainment, sports, retail, office and hotel complex, plan to open in late 2007.

“The Mills Corporation is proud to play a key role in two historic events for the state of New Jersey: the revitalization of the Meadowlands Sports Complex and the protection of the vast Empire Tract,” said Laurence C. Siegel, Mills’ chairman and CEO, in a news release.

“I am pleased to say that with the final permit in hand, we now can bring to life Meadowlands Xanadu’s unique blend of new concepts in interactive entertainment, dining, retail and night life, and simultaneously ensure that for generations to come, visitors to the Meadowlands will be able to enjoy the pristine beauty of the incomparable natural resource known as the Empire Tract.”

The developers are paying the New Jersey Meadowlands Commission $869,000 to mitigate the project’s environmental effects.