Consider those Wall Street Journal-fueled hopes that CitiField would be something else dashed, as both the Mets and CitiGroup say they are going ahead with their $400 million, 20-year agreement. Mets VP of business affairs David Howard tells Newsday, "The Wall Street Journal got it wrong. Citi contacted us this morning and they reinforced that they will honor the legally binding agreement that they have with us. They have consistently said to us that they will honor the agreement." And Citi released a statement, "Citi signed a legally binding agreement with the New York Mets in 2006. No TARP [Troubled Asset Relief Program] capital will be used for Citi Field or for marketing purposes." And yesterday, Howard explained to Newsday, "Superficially, I understand [the public's reaction. But the reality is, the TARP recipients were companies the federal government thought were vital to our economy. To continue doing business, they still need to advertise."
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