MEADOWLANDS – A judge will decide by the end of the week whether to throw out a lawsuit filed by the pro-football teams the Giants and Jets against the developers of the American Dream Meadowlands (formerly Xanadu) project on Route 3, according to news reports. Lawyers for the developer Triple Five, the New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority, and the NFL teams appeared before Superior Court Judge Peter Doyne in a Hackensack courtroom on Monday.
The professional sports teams sought an injunction in June to prevent Triple Five from reviving the project, which has been stalled since 2009. The lawsuit filed in a state court in Bergen County alleges that Triple Five did not receive their consent to expand the project and also cites traffic impacts. The judge will determine whether the developer breached a 2006 agreement with the NFL teams by gaining preliminary state approval for the new amusement park without the teams’ written consent.
The $3.7 billion project, includes a Dreamworks Animation theme park, attractions, retail and other venues. The retail and entertainment venue will also have a water park, ice skating rink, indoor ski park and theaters along with nearly 1.7 million square feet of retail space and 150,000 square feet of fine dining and restaurants. The American Dream project has faced serious financial hurdles that threatened to shut it down until Triple Five came forward to take over its completion in 2009, and until Gov. Chris Christie said the state would take a more active role.