The Willets Point Transformation Project is a 23-acre, multi-phase redevelopment in northern Queens, New York City, near Citi Field. Led by NYCEDC and the Queens Development Group, a joint venture of Related Companies and Sterling Equities, the project is transforming a former industrial area into a mixed-use neighborhood.
Key Components
- Affordable housing: 2,500 affordable homes are planned, including 1,100 units in the first phase. The first 880 homes have opened to residents.
- Etihad Park: A 25,000-seat soccer stadium is under construction for New York City FC, with an opening planned for July 2027.
- School and hotel: The plan includes a 650-seat public K-8 school and a 250-room hotel.
- Public space: More than 150,000 square feet of parks and other public open space are planned.
- Infrastructure: The redevelopment includes new streets, utilities, water and sewer systems to support the new neighborhood.
Current Status
Willets Point remains under construction. The first residential phase has opened, while additional housing, infrastructure, the school, hotel and Etihad Park are progressing toward completion. The project is one of the many affordable housing projects in the USA.
In Brooklyn Brownsville Arts Center & Apartments a $254m project broke ground on 10th September 2025, yet another project aimed at bringing more affordable houses to New York.
Factsheet: Willets Point Transformation – New York City
Project Overview
- Location: Willets Point, Queens, New York City
- Announced: November 2022 by Mayor Eric Adams
- Partners:
- City of New York (Mayor’s Office, NYCEDC, HDC, HPD)
- Queens Development Group (Related Companies + Sterling Equities)
- New York City Football Club (NYCFC)
Housing Development
- Largest 100% affordable housing project in NYC in 40 years
- Phase 1:
- Buildings 1 & 2 (880 units) – Frames completed August 2025
- Building 3 – 220 senior housing units (upcoming)
- Phase 2:
- 1,400 additional affordable units
- Completion goal: 2,500 affordable homes in total
Community Benefits
- 150,000 sq. ft. of new public open space
- New public school
- Over 20,000 sq. ft. of retail space
- Infrastructure upgrades (roads, drainage, flood resiliency, utilities)
- Environmental remediation: 200,000 tons of contaminated soil removed
Economic Impact
- Projected $6.1 billion impact over 30 years
- Jobs Created:
- 14,200 construction jobs
- 1,550 permanent jobs
- Local hiring supported through HireNYC
Sports & Entertainment
- 25,000-seat soccer-specific stadium
- Permanent home of NYCFC
- First privately-financed major league stadium in NYC in generations
- Fully electric, first of its kind in MLS and NYC professional sports
- Opening: 2027 MLS season
- Nearby: Citi Field & Billie Jean King National Tennis Center
Sustainability & Resiliency
- Raised streets and buildings above 100-year floodplain
- Target: LEED Gold or Enterprise Green Communities standards
- All-electric stadium
Reported in December 21 2023 – Mayor Eric Adams along, with community leaders came together in Queens to celebrate the commencement of construction for a scale affordable housing development at Willets Point. This significant milestone signifies the step, in the citys plan to revitalize and transform the vicinity surrounding Citi Field.
The Willets Point transformation involves collaboration between the city government and co developers, Related Companies and Sterling Equities. The goal of this project is to provide over 2,500 homes, create 35,000 square feet of new public open space and make significant improvements to the infrastructure. Over the three decades it is estimated that this initiative will generate an impact of $6.1 billion while also creating 1,550 permanent jobs and 14,200 construction jobs.
Willets Point is one of several major Queens redevelopment efforts reshaping the borough’s housing landscape. Another is the proposed Sunnyside Yard housing plan, which would create 12,000 homes, including 6,000 Mitchell-Lama-style affordable units, by building a massive platform over the active rail yard. Mayor Zohran Mamdani is seeking more than $21 billion in federal grants to advance the infrastructure needed for the project.
Additionally, the transformation of MLS stadium sites into broader mixed-use destinations is also taking shape in Frisco, Texas, where Hunt Sports Development has announced plans for a new district at Toyota Stadium. The project will add a roughly 290-room hotel, more than 40,000 square feet of convention and event space, dining and entertainment facilities, complementing a separate office campus planned on the stadium’s west side.
First Phase of the affordable housing development at Willets Point
According to Adams, the project, at 38 21 Seaver Way will include 880 apartments. This development is part of a plan to bring market rate apartments to Willets Point in the near future. It’s noteworthy that this initiative represents the city’s expansion of affordable housing, in forty years.
“We’re embarking on a project of a lifetime constructing the affordable housing development our city has seen in four decades” the mayor expressed. “What we’re witnessing in Willets Point represents the future of New York City—a future where every New Yorker can comfortably reside in an apartment, near schools well-paying jobs, green spaces and convenient public transportation.”
The first part of the plan to redevelop Willets Point, dubbed “Phase One”, is set to wrap up in 2026. This initial stage will see two apartment buildings go up, which will serve as the cornerstone for the broader ambitions to transform the neighborhood. The larger vision calls for tons of new housing, a professional soccer stadium, a brand-new public school, 22,000 square feet of shops and restaurants, and 30,000 square feet of community green spaces and plazas for people to gather.
Out of the new affordable houses being built at Willets Point Phase One, about 15% of them will be reserved for New Yorkers who were previously homeless and getting back on their feet. Another 40% of the units will be priced way below market rate, to make sure lower income families can afford them too. They’re setting aside these “deeply affordable” homes so folks earning less than 60% of the typical household income in the area will have quality housing options as well.
Read also: Construction Starts on New Affordable Housing in Manchester, NH
