Mets in 'foul' territory Mold in new $697M ball park

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Mets in 'foul' territory

By JAMES FANELLI

Last Updated: 10:45 AM, September 6, 2009

Meet the mess.

The Mets' new $850 million stadium is breaking down at about the same rate

as its beleaguered lineup, the Post has learned.

Less than a season old, Citi Field has been plagued by water damage to

several luxury suites -- including Jerry Seinfeld's -- as well as mold, falling

signs and concrete, flooding in outfield seats, faulty electrical wiring

and shoddy tile work, sources said.

J.C. Rice

JERRY-BUILT: City Field opened amid high expectations, but The Post

discovered countless repair problems that hit premium-paying superfans like

Jerry

Seinfeld (above) as well as bleacher creatures.

" Yankees fans must have built the place, " an insider scoffed.

" Sh- - -y Field -- that's what we call it. "

Perhaps the biggest bungle is a water leak that sprang in early August, the

source said, creating mold in Seinfeld's lavish suite and three others

nearby.

The posh boxes rent for $250,000 to $500,000 a year.

The problem was so bad that repairmen were forced to tear down walls in the

suites on Aug. 9 to search for the source of the leak while the Mets were

on a seven-game road trip, a source said.

" I think Jerry's a Yankees fan now, " a neighboring suite-holder joked of

Seinfeld, who was not available for comment.

Sources said other problems have turned Mets maintenance crews into the

team's real five-tool stars. Among the problems:

* A nonworking elevator last week that forced Mets owner Fred Wilpon to

climb four flights to his office.

* An outfield section known as " Mo's Zone " flooding in a rainstorm three

months ago because drains were clogged. The backup was caused by 20 feet of

pipe collapsing in the bullpen.

* A 4-by-6-foot illuminated sign falling in the field-level promenade

during an off day.

* Electricity in the kitchen above the ticket booths near the rotunda

shorting out. One outage caused the refrigerators to fail and water to leak into

the ticket booths.

* A piece of concrete breaking off; it's now sitting in a field crew's

office.

* Air conditioning and heating in the maintenance crew's locker room that

hasn't worked since Day 1.

* Improperly installed electrical outlets. There is only one socket in the

team's laundry room, so a power strip is needed to plug in all the washing

machines.

* A black granite capstone on the stadium's ground-level façade falling

off. Yesterday, Mets workers were spotted fixing the broken tile.

* Soaked seats in another luxury suite caused by a leaky ceiling during a

rainy Mets-Yankees game. Crews carrying buckets, mops and towels paraded

into the suite all night to stem the tide.

Even before the 42,500-seat ballfield opened in April, there were signs of

trouble. In January The Post spotted rust on a beam running down the wall

of the front entrance.

Dave , the Mets' executive vice president of business operations,

acknowledged some of the problems, but called them minor and not unexpected.

" Any suggestion that Citi Field is less than an elite, world-class

entertainment facility is flat-out inaccurate and unfounded, " he said.

" When you open a building with 1.2 million square feet, you're going to

have issues like this, " he added. " Whether it's a leak or a circuit tripping,

you have a punch list of items. There were thousands on the list, mostly

minor things.

" That is a routine matter in a major building . . . Nothing on that list

had any effect on the enjoyment of the fans and their experience. "

A spokeswoman for Xerox, which rents the suite adjacent to Seinfeld's,

said, " We've had absolutely no problems with our suite this season. "

confirmed luxury-suite leaks but said the walls were mold-resistant.

He also said Wilpon's elevator had not failed but was momentarily unusable

while technicians tested its backup generator. He denied that the air

conditioning in the maintenance crew's locker room was on the fritz.

Assemblyman Brodsky (D-Westchester), who criticized the city

Industrial Development Agency over its deal to give the Mets and Yankees

tax-free bonds to build new stadiums, said there should be an assessment of the

stadium's condition now that the inaugural season is drawing to a close.

" Taxpayer money is going to build the stadiums for these wealthy private

entities, and it's not clear that anyone is checking on anything, " Brodsky

said. " No one knows who's accountable. "

The city and state issued $697 million in tax-free bonds to finance the

construction of the throwback-style ballpark resembling Ebbets Field. Under

the deal, the Mets pay off the bonds, but save on interest and taxes.

Contractor Hunt-Bovis built Citi Field over two years. Federal prosecutors

are investigating whether Bovis overbilled for work performed at the

stadium.

Additional reporting by Kathianne Boniello

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