A proposed multi-billion-dollar casino project in Nassau County is facing further scrutiny after locals caught wind of a potential tax break for the gambling company.
The “Decline the Casino” Civic Alliance, a nonpartisan group of citizens, joins many others in opposing the Las Vegas Sands Corp. proposal to build a new casino and entertainment complex at the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum.
Sands is competing for one of three available downstate New York casino licenses, creating intense competition among gambling operators. Additionally, many of the projects are facing resistance from their respective communities due to concerns over traffic, crime, or the morality of gambling.
Social association: Sands NY modern casino ‘ strategies to vacuum pressure up wagering losses’
The Long Island civic association’s latest criticism of the Nassau Coliseum Center (as the project is called) is financially motivated.
In a statement, the “Decline the Casino” Civic Alliance said it is “the height of hypocrisy” for a profitable company like LV Sands to seek tax relief.
Their statement reads, in part:
“This is a company that plans to vacuum up gambling losses ‘in excess of $2 billion’ annually, the majority of which is expected to come from Nassau County residents… Seeking tax breaks to chip away at the meager payments they’ve promised in relation to their expected massive windfall from the residents’ gambling losses reveals the greed driving their forceful push to impose their casino into our community.”
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According to Newsday, the Las Vegas Sands Corp. may seek a sales tax exemption on construction material purchases and a reduction in the mortgage recording tax. The company makes payments-in-lieu-of-taxes (PILOT) to various entities, including the state, school district, and Hempstead Town.
Sands and Nassau County officials reached a 99-year lease agreement for the land surrounding the Old Barn earlier this year. The Coliseum itself has been exempt from property taxes for years.
Sands will pay $5 million annually for the state land. If LVS obtains a casino license, the rent will increase to $10 million per year. With an operational casino, the county would receive $25 million for the first three years in addition to the annual rent. After three years, payments to the county would increase to $50 million.
LVS would also pay $1.9 million to the Nassau County Police Department.
According to local news reports, the amounts would be cut nearly in half without a casino.
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Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman says the Sands’ project will “provide a world-class entertainment center with a luxury spa and hotel, creating thousands of jobs and economic prosperity” for the county.
However, groups like the Decline the Casino Civic Alliance say they don’t want a gambling parlor on Long Island. Hofstra University, which would essentially be neighbors with the Coliseum casino, is in a legal battle with county officials over zoning violations.
Leadership from various organized labor groups and the NAACP are in favor of the agreement. Nassau Community College is also supporting the casino project.
Not sure yet about NY modern casino licenses
Sands is among many bids for the downstate New York casino licenses. Other prominent gambling companies reportedly in the mix include:
– Caesars Entertainment
– Hard Rock International
– Bally’s Corporation
– Mohegan Sun
– Wynn Resorts
– Legends/Saratoga
Two existing racinos meet the criteria to receive a downstate license. Empire City, an MGM Resorts International property in Yonkers, and Resorts World NYC, a Genting Group facility at Aqueduct Racetrack in Queens, are expected to be in the running for two of the available licenses.
The New York State Gaming Commission will announce details later this year following recommendations from the three-member Gaming Facility Location Board. However, we are still awaiting the first round of responses from the GFLB, which were supposed to be released several months ago.
The winning applicants must pay a $250 million license fee and demonstrate at least $500 million in capital investment.
David Danzis is a writer for PlayNY. A New Jersey native and honors graduate of Rutgers University, he served as a newspaper reporter for the New Jersey Herald and Press of Atlantic City, earning statewide awards for his coverage of politics, government, education, sports, and business. Today, he contributes to New York’s growing legal gambling landscape, including online gambling and the potential legalization of NY online casinos. David lives in Mays Landing with his wife and two children. When not at the beach, on a golf course, or snowboarding, David enjoys watching his beloved New York sports teams—the Yankees, Jets, Rangers, and Knicks.
