Environmental review of Long Island casinos moving forward
Amid Hofstra University's legal challenge, an environmental review is underway that is a necessary component of Las Vegas Sands' effort to build a casino hotel on New York's Long Island.
Hempstead city policymakers voted unanimously Tuesday to make the city the focal point for implementation of the state Environmental Quality Review Act. The study will determine the feasibility of Sands' plan to build a $4 billion casino resort on the site of the former Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Uniondale, New York.
Hempstead last month halted its efforts to take a lead in the state Environmental Quality Review Act process. At the time, New York State Supreme Court Justice Sarika Kapoor ruled that Nassau County violated the New York State Open Meetings Law by transferring the arena lease to Sands. That ruling was later set aside by the Appellate Division of the New York State Supreme Court.
Hofstra, a plaintiff in the lawsuit filed by Kapur, claims Nassau County officials did not give the public adequate opportunity or time to comment on the casino issue. However, other groups opposed to the project claimed that no effort was made in the environmental review process.
Hempstead, Sands seek transparency
Opponents of the Nassau County casino plan claim lawmakers approved the Sands deal behind the scenes and that the related regulatory review process was hidden from public comment.
In contrast, supporters of the integrated resort claim that Long Island politicians have made clear their support for the Sands proposal, noting that residents have expressed support for the project at multiple meetings.
As for the environmental review process, Hempstead lawmakers voted to use the assessment drafted by Sands as a template and held two related review meetings on Jan. 18 at the Long Island Marriott in Uniondale.
The Uniondale Chamber of Commerce is one of the groups supporting the Sands proposal. Chamber leaders noted that many local businesses, including restaurants, support the Sands casino proposal. The location is ideal for LVS as Nassau County is the second most populous county in New York State, behind New York City. Additionally, Long Island is just a short drive from JFK and LaGuardia Airports.
A key piece of the environmental assessment puzzle
Legal experts speculate that Hofstra's case focuses on getting Nassau County and Sands back to square one, perhaps betting that a protracted legal battle will prevent the county and gaming companies from credibly bidding New York regulators may issue a license next year for one of the three largest casinos in the state.
Both the county and Sands have made clear they want to move forward independent of Hofstra's legal efforts. Therefore, a comprehensive, transparent environmental review is critical to rebut Hofstra’s claims.
Helping speed up the legal process is also critical because New York's high court has a huge backlog and some environmental review cases take years to hear.
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Source: www.casino.org
