Building to begin on LEGOLAND New York

Construction is to begin on LEGOLAND New York, the third LEGO theme park to open in the USA.

A press conference was held to announce that building will begin on the LEGOLAND New York, with thousands of LEGO bricks dumped onstage by construction vehicles. Approval has been given for the theme park to be built in Goshen, 60 miles north west of New York.

The LEGOLAND New York team provided more details in a press release:

“We have spent a lot of time building relationships in the community, listening and responding to concerns, and we are looking forward to building a theme park that will enhance the community and be a tremendous neighbor,” said Varney. “I am honored to announce LEGOLAND New York is officially moving forward.”

After more than a year of public meetings and hearings in addition to a thorough and transparent review process by officials, LEGOLAND New York has been granted conditional approval of its site plan by the Town of Goshen Planning Board, allowing it to officially move ahead with building the Park.

At the ceremony, Varney spoke about the uniqueness of LEGOLAND parks and reinforced that Merlin picked an outstanding location to construct its newest LEGOLAND Park.

“We are humbled to join the Goshen community,” said Varney. “I can pledge to you that LEGOLAND New York will be a trusted and valued member of this community. I am thrilled that Goshen is the place where we will build our third LEGOLAND Park in the U.S. – the first in the Northeast. I am eager to continue with our $350 million investment with significant more investments to follow in the years to come, providing Goshen, Orange County, the Hudson Valley and New York State with significant economic benefits.”

LEGOLAND New York anticipates generating $283 million in sales tax and hotel occupancy tax for Orange County over the period of 30 years. The Town of Goshen would receive about $71 million in revenue from the host community fee LEGOLAND will pay and its share of PILOT payments and tax payments.

The Park’s design will build upon the successful models of parks operating in California, Florida, the United Kingdom, Germany, Malaysia, Denmark, Dubai and Japan.

The New York Park will be open seasonally from April 1 to November 1.

LEGOLAND New York is expected to open in 2020.