County lawyers: Las Vegas Sands can walk away after three years

                                                                                      

Oh no. Here we go again.

It's been more than 30 years that county officials have talked about redeveloping the outmoded, money-losing Nassau Coliseum. But nothing of note ever happened or changed.

Every proposal was shot down or failed because of its own questionable financing.

Earlier this year, Republican County Executive Bruce Blakeman brought in the Las Vegas Sands, Inc. with a plan to develop a casino, hotel and resort on the 72-acres of deteriorating blacktop around the Coliseum in Uniondale.

The Sands would immediately pay the county $54 million with millions more to surrounding communities, promoters said. Eventually, the county would reap billions, officials said. After the legislature in May voted 17-1 to approve the transfer of the existing Coliseum lease to the Sands, the Sands delivered $54 million to Nassau.

Opponents -- mainly Garden City and nearby Hostra University -- objected to the traffic, gambling and questionable clientele that a casino would attract. They said the county should bring in technology and health care firms instead.

Las Vegas Sands is vying to get one of three state casino licenses. But even if it didn't get approval for a casino, it would still build a five-star hotel and entertainment center, officials said.

Now that seems to be in question.

Earlier this month, a state judge, who graduated from Hofstra Law School and was honored by the school, ruled in favor of a Hofstra challenge to the casino project, deciding that the county had not followed appropriate open meetings and environmental review laws when approving the project estimated to cost as much as $5 billion.

Acting Supreme Court Justice Sirika Kapoor nullified the county lease, telling the county to start all over again in approving the project.

The county hired the white-shoe law Manhattan firm of Sullivan and Cromwell to fight Kapoor's ruling -- instead of the firms usually hired by the county who have one or more partners prominent in local politics.

Sullivan and Cromwell aren't cheap.

Even discounted, the rate for partners is more than $1,200 an hour.

Here is the rate schedule in the proposed contract;

The Legislature's Republican-controlled Rules Committee has been asked to approve the contract on Nov. 27.

The contract back-up explains why Cromwell and Sullivan was chosen:

"The County Attorney's Office reviewed the existing special counsel panel for firms with relevant expertise in high profile complex litigation and was unable to find one. This matter involves certain nuances that required the special expertise and availability that came with the Sullivan & Cromwell LLP firm. Counsel was willing and able to address the urgency of the matter immediately. Given the alleged violations and impending Oral Argument, the firm needed to commence their services immediately. Due to this compelling need for Counsel's immediate services, and their availability to quickly step in, Counsel was selected as a sole source."

The firm immediately filed opposition papers. And in the midst of pages and pages of legalese, here is this paragraph saying, essentially, that Las Vegas Sands can walk away. 

Explaining the state cannot approve a casino license if there is not a valid lease that has been approved by a community advisory board and local zoning board.

"If that occurs, this Court will be powerless to restore the status quo if and when it

reverses the Supreme Court’s decision. There is no reason to think that, if the Sands loses its

chance to compete for this round of casino licenses, the New York State Legislature will later

authorize additional licenses. Nassau County may thus permanently miss out on the casino that

its Legislature, by an overwhelming 17-1 vote, sought to secure. Indeed, it may lose the project

as a whole. If the Sands it unable to secure a casino license within three years, it may terminate

the Coliseum Lease entirely. (Ex. 5 § 6.06.)"

 

The referred to section of the lease is so long and convoluted, it can be interpreted differently by any lawyer reading it.

So yet another proposed Coliseum development could go down again.

Seems like it's time for Garden City Mayor Mary Flanagan, Hostra University President Susan Poser and Legis. Delia DeRiggi-Whitton (D-Glen Cove), the only legislator to vote against the project because she would rather see technology or health care businesses at the Coliseum site,  to step up to find and secure those preferred businesses.