Industry Noize: Izod Center Sale Floated

The 33-year-old building is operated by the New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority, and has faced increased competition in recent years.

“The future of Izod is on the table,” former NJSEA chair Jon Hanson told the Star-Ledger.

“It doesn’t make money, and it’s time to look at it and decide what its future should be,” he said. The arena lost the NHL’s New Jersey Devils to the Prudential Center in Newark in 2007 and the NBA’s Nets also fled for newer, greener pastures at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn in 2012. Many tours have also followed suit and are playing newer venues, NJSEA President Wayne Hasenbalg added.

“We’ve all lost business to Barclays. They’re getting all that stuff because they’re making deals,” he said, noting sometimes it’s not worth competing for events that might generate a loss.

All is not lost, however. Work is once again set to begin on a multimillion-dollar amusement park project at the Meadowlands where the Izod Center is located, and developer Triple Five has apparently shown interest in taking over the venue.

“We see Izod as a complementary entertainment venue that adds value to the sports complex and to us,” Triple Five spokesman Alan Marcus told the paper. “At the appropriate time, we anticipate entering into discussions about the future of Izod.”

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