As the competition heats up for the three retail casino licenses in New York City, so does the opposition to Las Vegas Sands’ site proposal. In an open letter, the Trustees of Hofstra University expressed their disdain for LVS’ plan to build a casino in the area around Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum, known as the Nassau Hub.
Nassau Coliseum, once home to the NHL’s New York Islanders, is situated right next to Hofstra to the east, which is the primary concern of the Trustees, which include University president Susan Poser.
“The Nassau Hub is an entirely inappropriate location for a casino,” reads the letter. “It is surrounded by educational institutions from preschool through graduate school, and a diversity of suburban communities that should not be exposed to the increased traffic congestion, crime, economic harm to local businesses, and other negative impacts that a casino development would likely bring.”
The Trustees added, “There are other locations in and around New York City to site a casino that are not in such proximity to multiple educational institutions where so many young people live and learn.”
The letter noted that about 40,000 students of all ages attend school near the Nassau Hub, a quarter of which are Hofstra students.
The rest of the letter touts Hofstra’s different academic programs and community work the school and its students are involved in.
The Village of Garden City, just a few minutes to the west of Hofstra University, has also spoken out against Sands’ casino proposal. In fact, the city board voted against it in a recent meeting. And while the vote has no actual affect on whether or not Sands will get a license and approval for its Nassau Coliseum site, it’s still an outward display of disapproval in the local community, enough of which could hold some sway.
“It’s not good for our community, it’s not good for Nassau County,” Pearl Jacobs of the Nostrand Gardens Civic Association told News 12 last month. “Those casinos bring in crime.”
Naturally, Las Vegas Sands and those in the community who want the casino are promoting job creation, economic development, tourist dollars, and local tax benefits.
Unlike Hofstra, two other local schools are ready to work with Las Vegas Sands. Both Nassau Community College (NCC), also next door to the Nassau Coliseum, and Long Island University, have partnered with Sands to grow NCC’s hospitality program. NCC would be Sands’ employee training center and the school’s students would have internship and other learning opportunities with the company.
Image credit: Flickr.com / thelittleone417
