Nassau exec: It’s a plot
Accuses Hofstra U. of ‘colluding’ with Citi Field casino bidder
Long Island officials on Wednesday accused Hofstra University of colluding with a Queens casino bidder to try to halt a competing bid at the Nassau Coliseum.
Nassau County charged that Hofstra, a powerful neighbor of the coliseum, had coordinated with Hard Rock International, which has joined Steve Cohen’s bid to put a casino in the Citi Field parking lots. Hard Rock immediately rejected the claim.
The Nassau County executive, Bruce Blakeman, cited a recent Newsday column that described a consultant saying in an email to Cohen’s office that he would communicate with Hofstra on a matter. The column also said Hofstra’s president denied communicating with any bidders outside of Nassau.
Referencing the column, Blakeman suggested in a news conference that “there is evidence” that Hofstra is “colluding or coordinating” with another entity against the coliseum bid.
“We find this very troubling,” said Blakeman, a Republican. “We find it hypocritical.”
The accusation was coupled with subpoenas to Hofstra issued by the Nassau County Legislature and served by the county sheriff’s office, according to the county.
The step escalates a protracted conflict between the university and local officials who want to see a revenue-driving casino on Long Island. The move also publicly dragged Cohen’s casino push into the suburban struggle.
A spokesman for Cohen declined to comment, and a spokesman for Hard Rock International, Jonathan Goldman, issued a statement saying that “Hard Rock has not had any communication whatsoever with Hofstra University or its president related to Nassau.”
“We are committed to integrity, honesty and transparency,” said Hard Rock’s statement. “We made this clear to all of our vendors and partners and will not tolerate any behavior that would counter that position.”
The consultant at the center of the Newsday column, Michael McKeon, did not immediately reply to a request for comment for this story.
It is unclear if the half-century-old Nassau Coliseum, a 16,000-seat former NHL arena, would be demolished to make way for the casino. Las Vegas Sands, a deep-pocketed gambling giant, has pushed the Long Island bid.
Hofstra President Susan Poser said in testimony to the County Legislature in May that Sands is “not attracted to Nassau County for any reason other than money.”
She has been subpoenaed to testify before the County Legislature on Monday, said Christopher Boyle, a spokesman for the county.
The subpoena also asked Poser for any “documents, correspondence, phone records, voice mails, instant messages, emails, text messages, letters, or other written communications” between her and Cohen.
In a statement, Hofstra said it would respond to the “subpoena in compliance with applicable law” but described the order as “another spurious attempt to distract and impede a fair and open process regarding this transfer of Nassau County land.”
In April, Hofstra filed a lawsuit seeking to block the Long Island casino bid.
In court papers filed in Nassau County Supreme Court, the private university said the County Planning Commission had denied the school sufficient opportunity to provide feedback on a proposed lease transfer for the coliseum site.
A judge sided with Hofstra in the fall, quashing the 99-year lease agreement and leaving the bid in limbo. Nassau has appealed the decision.
“We plan to get a license for Nassau County because we have the best application,” Blakeman said Wednesday,
The Nassau Coliseum bid and the Citi Field bid are thought to be two possible leaders in a packed field of about 10 contestants seeking a coveted downstate casino license from New York State.
Last winter, the state launched a highstakes process to award three $500 million downstate casino licenses to developers. Because two licenses are expected to go to existing so-called racinos in Yonkers and southeast Queens with horse racing and digital betting, the competition for the final downstate license has been heated.
The Nassau and Queens bids may benefit from their less congested locations — at least five of the new casino blueprints are aimed at Manhattan, where community pushback has been intense.
But the Nassau Coliseum and the Citi Field proposals have also met obstacles. Not only has the Nassau bid been bottled up in the courts, the Citi Field effort struck out last year in its effort to get state legislative approval for a crucial parkland termination.
All bids are to face panels with representatives from local officials that would determine their fate.
New York City bids require two-thirds approval from committees with representatives of the mayor, the governor, the local state senator and Assembly member, the local City Council member, and the local borough president.
The Long Island bid would be scrutinized by a five-member panel with representatives of the governor, the county executive, the local Assembly member and state senator, and the town supervisor.