The Co-op and Condo Insider
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The Co-op and Condo Insider
Soccer, Safety, and Renewal: How Francisco Moya Transformed the Neighborhood that Shaped Him
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When Francisco Moya received a call from the President of Ecuador on his first election night, the weight of the moment crystallized. Standing beside his emotional father just steps from his childhood home in Corona, Queens, Moya had become the first Ecuadorian-American elected to public office in United States history.
From organizing a neighborhood watch at just 15 years old to transforming Roosevelt Avenue's safety landscape as a City Council Member, Moya's journey embodies authentic community leadership. The podcast reveals his hands-on approach to governance, including a midnight walk with Mayor Adams that kickstarted a comprehensive neighborhood restoration program, reducing crime by 20% and revitalizing local businesses within a year.
Moya's work with co-ops and condos demonstrates his practical problem-solving abilities. When Dorie Miller, a large co-op in his district, faced foreclosure, he brought all parties to the table and mediated a solution that saved residents—many of them seniors—from losing their homes. "When you save someone's home," a local pastor told him, "you're a hero for life."
Perhaps most fascinating is Moya's 13-year quest to bring professional soccer to Queens. The soon-to-be-completed 25,000-seat stadium at Willets Point represents more than just sports—it anchors a transformative development with 2,500 affordable housing units, a new school, and 14,000 union jobs. For the boy who learned soccer in the shadows of Shea Stadium, this achievement completes the transformation of what F. Scott Fitzgerald once called the "Valley of Ashes" into a vibrant community hub.
Listen now to discover how deep community roots, cultural pride, and persistent vision can reshape a neighborhood while creating pathways to opportunity for generations to come.
Meet Francisco Moya
Speaker 1I got to meet the bankers face to face and I was very impressed that you , that you put this meeting together and was really just sort of the mediator , and I thought that was a great use of your office and just inserting yourself at that point made you a critical factor in a problem that eventually got resolved .
Speaker 2This is the Co-op and Condo Insider , the podcast dedicated to New York's cooperative and condominium communities . This is your trusted source for the latest insights , strategies and stories shaping the world of shared housing . You will hear from the people who are leaders in this community information and insights you will not hear anywhere else . If you want to stay ahead of the curve , you're in the right place . The views and opinions expressed on this program do not necessarily reflect those of the host or any affiliated individuals or organizations .
Speaker 1Hello and welcome to the Coltman Condo Insider , where we explore the real-world issues facing Coltman Condo communities across New York City with insight , expertise and a healthy dose of straight talk . I'm your host , jeffrey Maisel , corp Attorney and Legal Advisor to the President's Corp and Condo Council . I'm thrilled to be joined by my co-host , richard Solomon . A seasoned voice in public radio for over 20 years , richard has taken his listeners around the world to meet experts , newsmakers and the people making a real difference in our everyday lives . Richard , it's great to have you on the mic today .
Speaker 3Great to see you , Jeff . Just really awesome .
Speaker 1Okay , and we are honored to have a very special guest today , council Member Francisco Moya . Francisco and I we go way back and we've had lots of adventures together , which we'll venture into in a minute . He represents the 21st Council District , encompassing East Elmhurst , jackson Heights , lefrak City and his native Corona . Prior to his 2017 election to the council , mr Moyer was elected to the 39th Assembly District in 2010 , making him the first Ecuadorian American elected to public office in the United States . That must have been quite an honor for you . It's a tremendous honor , making him the first Ecuadorian American elected to public office in the United States .
Speaker 4That must have been quite an honor for you .
Speaker 1It's a tremendous honor , still to this day , to be representing my heritage here in the United States . Did it make news in Ecuador when you were elected ?
Speaker 4First , let me just start off by saying , jeff , thank you for having me . You know I really appreciate it . Richard , thank you to both of you Doing an amazing job on this podcast , the Co-op Condo Insider always doing great things and making sure that the listeners , you know , get the information that they need . So it's great to be on this . Look , you know , for me , I think it was probably one of the greatest memories I have of getting elected and being in public office . I remember the night of my first election in 2010, .
Speaker 4When I got elected to the assembly , I was very close to the ambassador of Ecuador . Now , I grew up here in Corona Queens . It was basically all Italian at the time and you know we were the first like Latino family on the block . And then the neighborhood says all of them do change and not a lot of ecuadorians , uh . When word got out that I won , uh , the ambassador , I was walking down the block from my house , my boyhood home , with my dad , my mom , my brother , uh , and we had all of our like victory parties at the local pizzeria down the block from my house . And as i'mia down the block from my house , and as I'm walking down the block , I'm getting the phone calls . We had a reclining call . You know , she was the senator at the time and you're just getting all these great phone calls . And then the ambassador called and he said you know , hey , I have someone on the phone who wants to say hello to you and congratulate . And I said , great , sure , and it was the president of Ecuador .
Speaker 4And I remember , you know , putting the phone on my chest , turning to my dad and saying , pop , you're not going to believe who's on the other line . And he's like , who is it Now ? My dad ? I lost my dad two years ago , but my dad is a big mush and my mom's always been like the like , you know , disciplinarian , and I saw his eyes just like started to well up with with with tears because he couldn't believe his youngest son won , won his election , the two .
Speaker 4The president of his home country is calling his son to congratulate him on this election and I remember seeing my dad just start to cry and I was like just a few feet away from like getting into my victory party and you know the emotions were there and I started to like tear up a little bit and I remember my mom grabbing me by the tie and she's like all right . Well , like you know , button up here . You know you got to go speak in public now , it's all good , you can do this later . Fix your hair , fix your hair . Yeah , it's just that , that's how , that's how she was , but it was such a , it was a great feeling , I think , you know , and it's uh , it's , it's an honor to hold that uh title .
Speaker 4But I always say , look , I may be the first , but , uh , I'm not going to be the last . And I think that there's a responsibility that I have also to help the younger generation of Ecuadorian Americans that are here move up in the world , whether it's politics
First Ecuadorian-American Elected to Office
Speaker 4or anything else . You know , I feel that it's a duty for me to be able to do that and cultivate that as well , and you know , it's a pretty important role that I take very seriously .
Speaker 1Is there a large Ecuadorian community in Queens and New York City in general ?
Speaker 4We are the largest community in the borough of Queens . We are the fourth largest in New York City , right behind the Mexican community . We're almost there . New York City , queens , in particular , is the largest place outside of Ecuador . That houses the most Ecuadorians outside of Ecuador .
Speaker 1And where is the best , most authentic Ecuadorian food ? This is for Richard , by the way .
Speaker 4Yeah , exactly .
Speaker 1Well , you've won many elections , so you know how to answer this thematically elections .
Speaker 4So you know how to answer this thematically . I mean there's there's there's a lot in the area , but I mean you know there's . There's two in particular that stand out for me the most . Uh , one is uh rincon , uh milania . It's uh right off of queen's boulevard . It's on the border of uh woodside , sunny side , like really top-notch food . And there's my guy who's on the queen's night market . Uh , he makes the best pernil sandwiches like outside of ecuador that I've ever tasted . They both I like cater , all my events because their food is so good , I mean it is absolutely delicious . We have a lot of other great ecuadorian restaurants . Please don't kill me that I didn't mention you , uh , but you can blame jeff , for I mean it is absolutely delicious . We have a lot of other great Ibogaine restaurants .
Speaker 1Please don't kill me that I didn't mention you , but you can blame Jeff for this . Well , you're more than welcome to come on future podcasts and we can read the list . So , by the way , that was the best intro we've had . I think I might end the show here , because that's a great story , really heartfelt . So I read your bio . You started community organizing at age 15 . You went to St John's University . Me too . I went to law school there . I assume I was a few years before you . So how did you get involved in community organizing and your entree into politics ? And we know about your first election .
Speaker 4so build up to that . You know it's a really interesting thing . I always wanted to be in an elected office . My dad , up until his dying day , had this . It was an index card and in the first grade I went to St Leo's School right here in Corona , queens , and they asked me what do I want to be when I grow up ? And you know I wrote that I wanted to be an elected official .
Speaker 1How old were you at this point ?
Speaker 4First grade , I think five , six years old . You know always had it , you know , in me and he always kept it in his wallet . You know , as like a reminder right , that this is something I wrote down . Uh , and when I was a teenager , I always got involved in the community . That was , you know , I just used to love politics .
Speaker 4I used to read about , you know , uh , all the different you know uh people that I enjoyed watching . Um , uh , people that I enjoyed watching , um , my cousin uh , who lived on the same block , by the way . Uh , she got mugged uh coming home from work and back then that was like completely unheard of Right , and uh right in front of her house . And so that led me to kind of like organize , like my neighbors , and we started a black association like a black watch Right , and we started a black association like a black watch right , and you know we would have these meetings in the basement of like my parents home and I got a small grant from then councilwoman helen marshall .
Speaker 4Uh , they got us like these , like walkie talkies , whistles , whatever that we were able to buy uh , and it really led me then to start looking at something like like a much bigger scope of like , beautification , removing graffiti , planting trees , all that and uh , it became a not a black association anymore , it was . It became the corona gardens neighborhood association . So it expanded . Um , and I remember there was a big congressional race at the time . It was redistricting . Maybe you remember Stephen Solars was a congressman here and got redistricted and I remember sending to all the candidates to come and talk to our block association and no one responded except a young firecracker of an activist by the name of Nydia Velazquez .
Speaker 1I've heard of her .
Speaker 4Yeah , and she actually won . And she won that election and myself , my older brother , my cousins , we got involved in her race . I was still like like a teenager and you know she was like , uh , hey , you know , come in , uh uh , intern for me when you get older . You know my brother went to work for my cousin , worked for her . Uh , it was really an entree into politics then , right it was . It was uh from from a small little incident . Uh , that sparked activism , sort of widened my perspective and idea of how politics really affects change locally .
Speaker 4And you know , when I was in college I went to St John's undergrad , as you mentioned . I interned for her , her throughout . I went to work in dc . I worked for two members
Community Organizing at Age 15
Speaker 4of congress . I worked for congresswoman nydia velasquez , uh , congresswoman brad sherman from from california . Uh , before I came back up , um , I did my master's . I got a fellowship , um , right , got my master's in public policy at bea College , the National Olympic Fellows . But then I went on to work for the New York State Senate . I was the secretary to the Senate on the date of Patterson and worked my way through that where led me to run for office . I ran for district leader here in the area .
Speaker 1How old were you then ?
Speaker 4I was still in college .
Speaker 1Uh , you know , maybe like he was that guy that you , that you think is going to be 35 , and then you meet him and he's he's 18 years old .
Speaker 4Yeah , and um , look , you know , it was like I was always up for the fight , right , I always thought that I could effectuate change , uh , in the neighborhood that I grew up in , right , I grew up in , right . For me , it's the neighborhood that shaped me . This is something that is , you know , in part of my DNA . Look , I bought the house I grew up in . I'm not going anywhere , and so , to me , the importance of not just being in elected office which you know , yes , that was a personal goal I was able to achieve , but it's also what you do when you get there , right ? Uh , what is it that I want to be able to accomplish ? Uh , what are the ? What are the things that I want to do ? Uh , to to not only be a , a , a good elected official . But how do I make my community better , right ? Um , and I remember , uh , sitting down my first month into being elected to the New York state assembly and , uh , my chief of staff , megan Taddeo , has been with me now , uh , 16 years since day one , I said we're going to write down the 10 things , major things that uh , we're going to put on this list and , at the end of whatever , how long this career is if we can check off all these boxes , we can say we did everything . And you know , we can walk away from this and say , wow , we really did a great job . And you know , wow , we really did a great job . And you know I'm very fortunate to have been able to check that last box off my list with the soccer stadium that's being built right now at Willits Point . And so you know , I've had a really great career , had great mentors , but I've also had a great family structure that really helped make me who I am today .
Speaker 4And you know my dad was an immigrant from Ecuador . He came here when he was 17 years old . He had $100 in his pocket , didn't know anybody , but he had a desire to succeed . He wanted to be an architect and my dad knew he couldn't get the education back home . But he came here and he wound up actually being getting drafted um and going to serve in vietnam . Now imagine that . You know , I can never imagine myself , at 17 , 18 years old one , going uh and being in a in a foreign country by myself within within a year or so of being here . You get drafted , you get sent to the front lines , came back , came back to Queens when he came back .
Speaker 4It's a great story . It's literally . You know I'm going to write the book that no one will read , but you know the World's Fair was happening and he was walking , you know , through the Great Lawn in Flushing Meadows , corona Park and he said he saw the most beautiful woman he's ever seen in his life . That was my mom . And the funny thing is they actually knew each other back home in Ecuador and they met back here at Flushing Meadows , toronto Park , the same park that you know . I learned to play the beautiful game we call soccer here , where , you know , I live four blocks away from . So the whole nucleus here has always been about my family , my roots , you know , the ability to get a good education , live the American dream , but also to be able to give back to my community in whatever way I can in the position that I have currently .
Speaker 1So true , true American hero , your father I mean he he went to a foreign country , that sent him to a foreign country and I'm sure he scored like 163 or something on his IQ test right , borderline genius .
Speaker 4I always joke . I say you know I'll give a speech , some I could graduate . I say you know I'll give a speech , some like a graduation . I'll say like uh , my brother got my dad's brains and I got my mom's good looks . Uh , my brother went to Ivy league .
Speaker 1I didn't , but still , you know it was like my dad was was was busy . I can only imagine being there when his son got a phone call from the president of Ecuador . I can't imagine a father being prouder at that particular moment he was .
Speaker 4You know he was , uh , he was a good man there's a word called velling .
Speaker 1I don't think it's , I think it's a yiddish word , but it means proud . So so let's get to some issues . Um , uh , we're talking about Corona and , by the way , richard , the council member's office Is across the street from Lemon . What's it ? Lemon ? Ice King , I'm there all the time Parkside , right down from the Bajie Court . Now you've got a visual of where he's sitting .
Speaker 4I'm there all the time . Well , come visit me , you can't miss me . I have a big sign with my face On top of the building Next time . I'm there all the time . Well , come visit me , you can't miss me . I have a big sign with my face on it on top of the building .
Speaker 3Next time I'm at Parkside I'll see you before I go in . There you go .
Speaker 1Your district was in the news for quite a while about safety concerns on Roosevelt Avenue and I know you were very proactive in addressing those issues . Just explain what your role was and how things are today compared to how they were during the pandemic .
Speaker 4You know ,
Addressing Roosevelt Avenue Safety Concerns
Speaker 4for me I got , like I said I'm born and raised here in Corona , queens Like I've seen everything the good , the bad and the ugly but I've never seen it this bad , along with Roosevelt Avenue . And you know , we started getting more increasing complaints from constituents about illegal vending open air prostitution . You know , when you get a phone call from a principal and like the PTA parents saying like there's an illegal massage parlor with women outside scantily clad , 50 feet from the entrance of a public school and they're like soliciting the parents , the bothers that go there school , and they're like soliciting the parents , the bothers that go there , you know it's like it was unheard of . And when I saw that I was like this is not the neighborhood , is not the city that I know and grew up in . Right , like you know , there's always been some type of crime , but never the quality of life issues like we were seeing here , like it was just , you know , out of control . And I called the mayor and I said , look , I send them video . I said like there's look , what's going on here . I'm like on Facebook and social media there was a video circulating of someone that came to Corona and was showing them how to negotiate prices with . You know , the prostitutes along Roosevelt Avenue . I'm like this is my neighborhood , it's a destination . We have beautiful cultural museums here , the Louis Armstrong house , you know , we have the Queens Theater . We have so many different places for people to come enjoy food . I do not want my neighborhood to be associated with this and when I send them that , you know I give it to the mayor because he showed up .
Speaker 4I remember I got the call and he's like it was like 12 o'clock at night , 12 o'clock in the morning , and he goes , I'm here and I went there with him and we walked there with the sergeant and he was like holy crap , like you weren't kidding , this looks like a third world country . And I said , look , we need to do something here . Like people don't feel safe , right , this is . This is , you know , not going to be sustainable if we continue to do this . And you know it wasn't just about arresting folks , because you're never going to arrest your way out of gang violence or any of these issues . Like we needed to have a much more macro approach to this , without failing my constituents who had to wake up every morning to go to work , come home , do shopping and feel unsafe to work , uh , come home , do shopping and feel unsafe , uh .
Speaker 4And so we came up with this plan of what's we called um uh , restore roosevelt banner , which , uh , we got rid of the ? Uh illegal vending . Um , we got rid of the prostitution and then focused in on it . I said we can't just do one of these like a raid here or there , because they'll just come right back . It has to be consistent , like we have to apply , you know this and has to be with all jurisdictions in here , every city agency that's involved , sanitation , you know the DA's office buildings , you know let's go after the landlords who are renting out . You know these locations to known . You know uh , rocks right . Like we got to do something here and we put that together and within , uh , I want to say like six months of of of this program or uh when was this ?
Speaker 1when was ?
Speaker 4this . We started November yeah , I think November 23 . Finished out right before the beginning of this summer , and the reduction was 20% within a year . Of all of this , and I think it just demonstrated that when you really have consistent , smart policing and have agencies deploy the resources necessary to these communities , it's not only about bringing back a sense of the quality of life here , but it brings back business . Right , because no business can sustain people saying I'm not going there , no restaurant , nothing . No one wants to have an illegal massage parlor operating in pure daylight in front of your business . You don't want to have illegal vendors selling the same products that you're selling right in front of your store , right ? Uh , this has to change , and so by doing that , it really took effect , because then I had other colleagues of mine asking me how did you do that ? And try to replicate it in some of their parts of the districts as well throughout the city , and it proved to be a huge success .
Speaker 1So things are much better as we speak .
Speaker 4Things are much better . There still needs improvement , but you are not seeing anything remotely close to that . As a matter of fact , about a month and a half ago I walked with now Deputy Mayor Kaz Daughtry , friday night it was around 1130 on Junction Boulevard in Roosevelt and we walked all the way down to about 82nd Street at night , unannounced , and we had cameras out , and what I saw even shocked me . At night on a Friday , I thought I wouldn't walk down Roosevelt Avenue . At that time it was families were out , restaurants were packed . You know we had some like sanitation issues that we needed to take care of , but nothing major .
Speaker 4I mean , then we got further out and then we did see some of the things that still exist , but we're addressing those and to see where that stretch that we walked from a year ago . It's just completely different . And we get I get calls all the time from business owners , from residents that have to take the subway , you know , to go to work , who say thank you , you got to keep it up . You can't , we can't let up because we don't want to see , you know , this bad element , you know . Come back to the streets again .
Speaker 1Great results . So we are called the Co-op and Condo Insider . So one of my questions I always ask our guests is you know , explain to the importance of the co-ops and condos in your district and and just your engagement with them over your tenure as as New York City council member in that distance in your district ?
Speaker 4You know , I think that co-ops and condos are , like , they're a key element to stable housing Right In my district .
Speaker 4Stable housing right in my district , I think , as we see the city , that has grown more and more unaffordable and home ownership , you know , has kind of like dwindled and become like a pipe dream .
Speaker 4I think that condos have offered that pathway to ownership for the middle class for a number of years and I think that for me , you know , it's always been important to to work in partnership with the uh condo boards that I have , you know , in in my district and , uh , you know , uh , how I met you , you know , is really the anchor to like an example of of , of how things can just spiral out of control , but how government can step in here and really make a difference in the lives of so many .
Speaker 4Because , as a , as a co-op or a condo owner , you know , you see , the realities that we faced , right , and and and and and , some of the , the laws that changed it , have like a direct impact on , on , you know , uh , uh , condo and co-op owners , right , this is it's , it's real . And so , you know , sometimes I think , when , when , when people are trying to pass laws , they're not always thinking about the effect and the impact that it can have . You know , on co-ops in the city of New York , you know , and I think it's just really important that we help advocate .
Speaker 1One thing that we've advocated for and I actually spoke to the mayor about this is that when unfunded mandates are passed by the city council , especially with co-ops and condos , there should be an affordability study connected to it so you can see the impact it would have on everyday pocketbooks . So let's talk about how
Saving Dory Miller Co-op
Speaker 1we met . Well , I'll tell you where I was . Well , no , first I met you in your office . I don't remember all those beautiful posters and jerseys . I represented a large co-op in your district called Dorie Miller and they were having a problem with their bank . They were having cash flow problems and you sat us all down with the bankers and it was the first time I got to meet the bankers face-to-face and I was very impressed that you put this meeting together and was really just sort of the mediator , and I thought that was a great use of your office , and just inserting yourself at that point made you a critical factor in a problem that eventually got resolved .
Speaker 4Yeah , look , I think you know , and the respect that I have for you , jeff , on working not just with you on that but just like you know , seeing how also you help navigate that shift right and how poorly managed boards can spiral out of control quickly and really put the shareholders in such risk of losing their homes . And I think that when I was made aware of the situation , having reached out to a lot of the connections that I have you know , mutual friends and people that also knew the bank folks to say , look , we got to resolve this . Right , like going into , like that's not the answer , right , like you want to get , hey , we got to do this . Let's , we got to structure it in a way that everybody wins . Do we need to get them , you know , on a fiscal diet 100% , but having people lose their homes was not the answer here . Right , and I think it was for me , you know , really important that we get this resolved because if you meet the people , you know you're putting a face to these folks that may lose their home . Right , they'll have nowhere to go .
Speaker 4Some of them were seniors , most of them right , and without the proper guidance , without the proper legal advice , you know , this could have been a disaster and I think it turned out well that you know I was able to help negotiate this and put this together and I'll never forget , you know , I was I'm very close to one of the Baptist churches here and the pastor , who has a lot of his clergy clergy that are in dorie miller , he said , you know , moya , one thing is , when you save someone's home , you're , you know , a hero for life . And I , you know I never took it that way right , it's just like more of like , hey , I think I'm just doing my job here , right , like and I'm not trying to sound like , you know , uh , I'm downplaying it , but you know this is my neighborhood , like I grew up . I don't want to see my neighbors be displaced . I don't want to see seniors have to suffer , you know , in their you know time where they should be enjoying their retirement .
Speaker 4You know , having been able to save that and fix it , you know , to me was really gratifying . But it also is good that these folks also found the right people like yourself to guide them through that . But also they learned , you know , the mistakes that they should never make again , uh , in order to keep their equity , in order to keep their homes and in order to to uh move forward . And I'm I'm just really uh , uh happy that it all turned out to work itself out and got to save Doreen Miller .
Speaker 1Yeah , and I can safely say , because I was a witness , that your intervention and using your skills and the procedure of your office slowed down that foreclosure process and stopped everybody and said let's sit down and talk . It took a long time , but they finally secured financing and they are a stable co-op as we speak today . So that's another big one and another great story .
Speaker 3So let's talk about soccer and
Building NYC's First Soccer Stadium
Speaker 3this incredible stadium . So , if you think about it , you got the tennis center , you got Citi Field and you got the soccer , so we're now a sports mega center in many ways , and that's , I guess , the finishing touch of the trilogy . You want to talk about how all that came about in all your efforts .
Speaker 4I've always had a vision board , right . And , like I said in the beginning of the podcast , I learned how to play soccer in Flushing Meadows , corona Park , right , it was in the shadows of Shea Stadium and , you know , I had this belief that I would . I would go pro . My mind said I could , my body said no . So I've always loved soccer . You know , uh , coming from a South American family , you know you're born with a soccer ball in your crib , right , uh , and it's it's . You know , when people sometimes people don't understand soccer , I tell them it's cultural , it really is cultural . Like you know , there's , there's a sense of pride and community that you don't get in the NFL or Major League Baseball .
Speaker 4And I remember when I first got elected to the New York State Assembly . You remember when the Jets wanted to come to New York and there was a possibility that they were going to go to the West Side Highway or they may come into Flushing Meadows , corner Park . I knew that land was available and the first thing I did was I wrote a letter to Don Garber , the commissioner of Major League Soccer . I didn't even have my name on the letter , it just said New York State Assembly . This is my first month as an assemblyman , my committees weren't even listed on my website , it just had my picture on it . And I said you know , commissioner , I , I , you know I'm a big fan , by the way , he is from Queens uh as well and I said I know that the expansion team is coming . The expansion uh lottery is coming to a major league soccer in 2013 . This is in 2011 . And I said I have the perfect location for a soccer stadium and for New York City to have its first own professional team New Jersey , new York , new Jersey Red Bulls . They play New Jersey , they're New Jersey , they're not New York , Right ? I didn't hear from him for six months and then I finally got a call and it was from his office and they said hey , you know , the commissioner would like to meet with you . And he's like I'm sorry , I , I had no idea who you were . He's like you didn't have anything , you know , up and and right . And I said , no , I know , and for 12 years , 13 years I think it took for me to finally , you know , be able to position myself . You can find the land , uh , which was willett's point , and you remember there was so many different iterations of Willits Point and they're going to have retail and all this other stuff that was coming in and they were going to have market rate housing .
Speaker 4And when I got into the city council , I just took that project over and I said , look , I have this idea . We're going to bring professional soccer to the Borough Queens and I have the location . And what we're going to do professional soccer to the Borough Queens , and I have the location . And what we're going to do here is not just build a soccer stadium , but we're going to build a brand new name . Right , because they had Related was involved with this . They had the housing piece to this and I said , look , I'm going to form a Willits Point Task Force . I got Melinda Katz involved at the time . I've got all the stakeholders city , state , community , board members , housing advocates , everyone Get on so that we can talk about what's the possibility there . All agreed that a cypress stadium should come and they were going to go to the Bronx and I actually had another cypress team coming in before NYCFC , but their project go to the Bronx . And I actually had another uh , cyber team coming in before NYCFC , but their uh , uh , uh project died in the Bronx and so they came back to the fold and we worked tremendously . It's great to , you know , have a wonderful partners in New York city football club uh , because they uh committed to building the stadium 100% privately financed .
Speaker 4That gave me the opportunity to get the housing there , to be 100% affordable housing , the first time in four decades that we have 2,500 units of affordable housing coming to the city of New York . We're in a housing crisis 500 units of affordable housing coming to the city of New York . We're in a housing crisis . We're going to have families actually in those apartments by the end of this year . And we did something nobody else ever did we built the housing first , the stadium's coming later . I wanted to demonstrate that this wasn't going to be empty promises . Like you know , barclays in Brooklyn that 12 years into this they still haven't fulfilled any of the community benefits that they , that they have going on . We built it , they committed to build it , 100 percent union labor , 14000 union jobs coming in here . It's 150-seat school , built a brand new neighborhood where , you know , in the Great Gatsby , it's called , you know , the Ashes of Willow .
Speaker 1Valley of the Ashes Valley of the .
Speaker 4Ashes . It's right there and so you know , now we've transformed this into an actual neighborhood , it has a cyber state , right . So that just comes in with that and it's like I said said it's going to be my legacy what's one of the ?
Speaker 3what's the seating capacity ? Number of games expected at home .
Speaker 4Seating capacity is um is 25 000 . That has the ability to go up to like 30 , 35 if they needed to . And then the season is about . They play like 17 home games there . But it's also going to be a place that is open to the community , so year round , you know , for graduations , community meetings , all of that . It's going to be there and they're going to be headquartered there . So a lot of times , you know , sports arenas come in but they're not headquartered where the stadium is , and it's going to be something really , really special . I can't wait because it's already three months ahead of schedule the building of the soccer stadium . March , for the kickoff of the season , march 2027 , we'll be inaugurating the New York City Football Club , new York's first ever soccer-specific stadium at Etihad Park , and I'll have a tear in my eye when I'm on that pitch and Jeff and I will do a remote podcast from there .
Speaker 3100% .
Speaker 1I just want to say we really appreciate you spending time with us and sharing these stories , and you can add to your list of accomplishments you are now a Co-op and Condo insider . It's official .
Speaker 4I love it . I love it .
Speaker 1Any last words .
Speaker 4Look , I just want to say thank you , jeff . Richard , thank you for having me . I really appreciate this . It's like if I'm sitting in the living room with two friends and you know that change that you know have a profound impact on you know co-op and condo owners . These are major things . Queens is a borough that has , you know , some of the most co-op and condo owners throughout , and I think the service that you're doing here is tremendous and I'm just really honored to have been able to be a guest on your podcast .
Speaker 1So again , thank you again , Francisco Moyer . Best of luck in your future's endeavors . And this is Jeffrey Maisel , along with my co-host , Richard Solomon , saying thank you for listening and we'll see you on the next podcast .