Oct 6 in Jet History: Jets Announce Move From Shea
Oct 6, 2015 5:37:01 GMT -5
thebigragu and 2foolish like this
Post by Lithfan on Oct 6, 2015 5:37:01 GMT -5
October 6, 1983
On this date in 1983, the New York Jets officially announced their intention to leave Shea Stadium and make the move across the river to the New Jersey Meadowlands for the start of the 1984 season. Jets owner Leon Hess had been negotiating with the City of NY for several months for either a new stadium or renovation to Shea, and was told to expect a proposal prior to Sept 30. That proposal would never come. In a press conference on 9/28, NY Mayor Ed Koch had announced the Jets intention to move to NJ. The team’s official announcement did not come until October 6.
The Jets problems with Shea really began when it was built for the Mets in 1964. Still stinging from the loss of the Brooklyn Dodgers and NY Giants several years earlier, the City offered the Mets a great deal on Shea. Included in the deal for the Mets was all concession and parking revenue from Jets games at Shea. Perhaps even more troubling was the Mets ability to prevent the Jets from playing home games during baseball season, which meant the Jets often started the season with several road games. During the 1973 season, when the Mets made it to the World Series, the Jets were forced to open up with 6 consecutive road games and had to give up one home game. They only played 6 of their 14 games at home that season.
Making the situation worse were perceived snubs of the Jets by the Mayor. Hess had appeared to be disappointed that the Mayor, who was not a football fan, only attended one Jet game at Shea Stadium and left during the first half. In September, while Hess and the Mayor were negotiating, the Mayor agreed to attend a game in the Owner’s Box. There was a scheduling mistake and the Mayor never showed up, his brother was getting married the same day and he could not make it to the game. This infuriated Hess and may have been the last straw.
The move to New Jersey was announced as a temporary measure. The Jets intended to return to NY in 5 years, assuming the City would agree to:
1. Build a new stadium within the City of NY
2. Have all necessary permits, approvals and financing in place by 2/1/86
3. Be able to offer the Jets occupancy for the 1989 season
Whether Hess ever really intended to return to NYC is a matter for debate.
In a letter to the Mayor, Hess wrote that the Jets “have been and still are playing our home games in a run-down, neglected stadium which is well-known to be the NFL’s poorest facility for athletes and spectators alike.”
“You cannot fool the public, Mr. Mayor,” Hess wrote. “Jet fans want a clean, efficient well-run stadium built for football.”
In one of the more interesting “what ifs” to come out of this story, just 6 months prior to announcing the move, the Jets selected Ken O’Brien in the NFL Draft ahead of Dan Marino. One reason given at the time of the selection by Mike Hickey, who was running the Jets draft, was that he preferred O’Brien to Marino because O’Brien had the stronger arm. He thought it would be better suited to the windy conditions at Shea Stadium. Had Hickey known the Jets would only play one more season at Shea, might that 1983 draft gone differently? Perhaps, but we will never know.
Source: NY Observer & Washington (PA) Observer-Reporter
On this date in 1983, the New York Jets officially announced their intention to leave Shea Stadium and make the move across the river to the New Jersey Meadowlands for the start of the 1984 season. Jets owner Leon Hess had been negotiating with the City of NY for several months for either a new stadium or renovation to Shea, and was told to expect a proposal prior to Sept 30. That proposal would never come. In a press conference on 9/28, NY Mayor Ed Koch had announced the Jets intention to move to NJ. The team’s official announcement did not come until October 6.
The Jets problems with Shea really began when it was built for the Mets in 1964. Still stinging from the loss of the Brooklyn Dodgers and NY Giants several years earlier, the City offered the Mets a great deal on Shea. Included in the deal for the Mets was all concession and parking revenue from Jets games at Shea. Perhaps even more troubling was the Mets ability to prevent the Jets from playing home games during baseball season, which meant the Jets often started the season with several road games. During the 1973 season, when the Mets made it to the World Series, the Jets were forced to open up with 6 consecutive road games and had to give up one home game. They only played 6 of their 14 games at home that season.
Making the situation worse were perceived snubs of the Jets by the Mayor. Hess had appeared to be disappointed that the Mayor, who was not a football fan, only attended one Jet game at Shea Stadium and left during the first half. In September, while Hess and the Mayor were negotiating, the Mayor agreed to attend a game in the Owner’s Box. There was a scheduling mistake and the Mayor never showed up, his brother was getting married the same day and he could not make it to the game. This infuriated Hess and may have been the last straw.
The move to New Jersey was announced as a temporary measure. The Jets intended to return to NY in 5 years, assuming the City would agree to:
1. Build a new stadium within the City of NY
2. Have all necessary permits, approvals and financing in place by 2/1/86
3. Be able to offer the Jets occupancy for the 1989 season
Whether Hess ever really intended to return to NYC is a matter for debate.
In a letter to the Mayor, Hess wrote that the Jets “have been and still are playing our home games in a run-down, neglected stadium which is well-known to be the NFL’s poorest facility for athletes and spectators alike.”
“You cannot fool the public, Mr. Mayor,” Hess wrote. “Jet fans want a clean, efficient well-run stadium built for football.”
In one of the more interesting “what ifs” to come out of this story, just 6 months prior to announcing the move, the Jets selected Ken O’Brien in the NFL Draft ahead of Dan Marino. One reason given at the time of the selection by Mike Hickey, who was running the Jets draft, was that he preferred O’Brien to Marino because O’Brien had the stronger arm. He thought it would be better suited to the windy conditions at Shea Stadium. Had Hickey known the Jets would only play one more season at Shea, might that 1983 draft gone differently? Perhaps, but we will never know.
Source: NY Observer & Washington (PA) Observer-Reporter
