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Mostly Cloudy MSG president wants to make L.I. ‘the place to be’
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The Coliseum arena itself would become a 14,500-seat concert hall. “The way to make it as competitive as possible is to keep the seating capacity to the level that you can attract those [top] performers,” said Ratner. “If you eliminate too much capacity, you wont be competitive with other area venues.”
The arena would also be adjustable to fit different “modes,” including a 1,700-seat amphitheater mode. A curtain system with digital technology would be implemented, “So you could change the color and feel of the curtains and make it really feel … intimate,” Ratner said.
Ratner asserted that, if chosen, his group would book the same top quality acts that perform at MSG. “We have relationships with all these artists and performers, and we’re going to be able to book them at the Nassau Coliseum,” he said.
In total, he said, 180 events would be booked annually, with another 150 events provided as part of Long Island Live!
Sports
During the May press conference in Mineola where Ratner first presented his proposal, he said that one of MSG’s three professional sports teams — the New York Liberty WNBA team, the Hartford Wolf Pack minor league hockey team or the Erie Bayhawks NBA Development League team — would be permanently relocated to the Coliseum. He remained noncommittal as to which of the three teams would be chosen, but he said, “We own and control teams, so this is something within our power.”
The Rangers and Knicks, which are also owned by MSG, would practice at the Coliseum, and Ratner said his group would also book boxing and college basketball events.
The MSG Zone, he said, would hold giant screens that would play sporting events for patrons to watch outside the arena.
Affordable pricing
Ratner said he would be cognizant of affordable pricing, noting that free entertainment and festivals would also be provided as part of “Long Island Live!” “We want to have something for everybody … that are affordable for everybody.”
He added that the development of the arena would create approximately 1,200 construction jobs, and the retail outside the arena would create about 2,500 permanent, part-time and seasonal jobs.
Why Nassau?
“We look for opportunities,” Ratner said. “You don’t really find many opportunities that have the characteristics that Nassau Coliseum has.”
The arena would also be adjustable to fit different “modes,” including a 1,700-seat amphitheater mode. A curtain system with digital technology would be implemented, “So you could change the color and feel of the curtains and make it really feel … intimate,” Ratner said.
Ratner asserted that, if chosen, his group would book the same top quality acts that perform at MSG. “We have relationships with all these artists and performers, and we’re going to be able to book them at the Nassau Coliseum,” he said.
In total, he said, 180 events would be booked annually, with another 150 events provided as part of Long Island Live!
Sports
During the May press conference in Mineola where Ratner first presented his proposal, he said that one of MSG’s three professional sports teams — the New York Liberty WNBA team, the Hartford Wolf Pack minor league hockey team or the Erie Bayhawks NBA Development League team — would be permanently relocated to the Coliseum. He remained noncommittal as to which of the three teams would be chosen, but he said, “We own and control teams, so this is something within our power.”
The Rangers and Knicks, which are also owned by MSG, would practice at the Coliseum, and Ratner said his group would also book boxing and college basketball events.
The MSG Zone, he said, would hold giant screens that would play sporting events for patrons to watch outside the arena.
Affordable pricing
Ratner said he would be cognizant of affordable pricing, noting that free entertainment and festivals would also be provided as part of “Long Island Live!” “We want to have something for everybody … that are affordable for everybody.”
He added that the development of the arena would create approximately 1,200 construction jobs, and the retail outside the arena would create about 2,500 permanent, part-time and seasonal jobs.
Why Nassau?
“We look for opportunities,” Ratner said. “You don’t really find many opportunities that have the characteristics that Nassau Coliseum has.”
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