By Ryan Schwach

The final steel beam was placed atop Etihad Park in Willets Point on Wednesday, marking a major milestone in not just the stadium’s construction, but that of the new neighborhood soon-to-be built in Queens.

Officials, union leaders and representatives from New York City Football Club raised the NYCFC-blue colored beam into the rafters of the still-under-construction stadium on Wednesday as work toward creating a new community at Willets Point continued.

The topping off of Etihad, the 25,000-seat soccer venue, is the crown jewel of the Willets Point efforts, which also includes 2,500 units of affordable housing, a hotel, a new school, and community space.

“It’s been 101 years since The Great Gatsby gave Willets Point the nickname ‘The Valley of Ashes,’” Borough President Donovan Richards said. “After a century of neglect and decades of dead dreams, Etihad Park is rising out of those ashes like a phoenix, and today we take another historic step toward turning the Valley of Ashes into the ‘Valley of Opportunity.’ We take another historic step toward bringing the world’s game to the World’s Borough. And what’s rising out of these ashes is the anchor of Willets Point.”

Etihad Park, which will host its first soccer matches in 2027, is the first stadium in the history of New York City designed specifically for the beautiful game, and will also be the city’s first all electric sporting venue.

“It’s hard to believe that more than a decade ago, we set out with what we thought was a simple idea: build a football club for New York City and a permanent home for the club,” said Marty Edelman, the vice chairman of NYCFC. “We looked across five boroughs, we looked at 30 different sites, trying to find the right place. But we didn’t just want a site. We wanted a home.”

Eventually, they settled on Queens, known for its cultural diversity and soccer-loving communities.

“There was only one place…the World’s Borough,” said Edelman. “Queens represents everything this club stands for, and a community that welcomed this project to make it possible.”

The project was pushed by local officials, including Richards, former Mayor Eric Adams and former Councilmember Francisco Moya.

“We’re not just watching a structure rise, we’re watching a vision take shape right here in our backyard,” said Moya, dawning an NYCFC cap. “I never stopped believing. I never stopped believing that we would bring soccer to Queens. And as I stand here today, finally seeing this rise, it’s a beautiful thing.”