Nassau OTB withdraws gaming proposal

Agency still intends to establish video lottery terminal in Nassau

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Amid mounting pressure from local residents and elected officials, and a lawsuit filed against them, Nassau Regional Off Track Betting said it has withdrawn its plan to establish a gaming facility inside a former Fortunoff in the Source Mall in Westbury.

Arthur Walsh, the general counsel for Nassau OTB, said in a statement on Saturday that the opposition from the community "no longer made the Fortunoff's property a viable option."

The agency said it it is still committed to establishing a video lottery terminal in Nassau County.

Nassau OTB announced on Dec. 30 its intention to lease the former Fortunoff space inside the Westbury mall, and has faced intense opposition ever since in the form of community rallies and protests.

On Friday, The Village of Westbury, Towns of Hempstead and North Hempstead, and residents of Westbury and Carle Place filed a lawsuit in Nassau County Supreme Court in Mineola, requesting the court to stop Nassau OTB from contract talks to lease the space, on the grounds that the agency has violated Town of Hempstead code and state environmental and open meeting laws.

Nassau OTB, a public benefit corporation, has insisted that it is not subject to local determination, and that it is under the lone purview of the New York State Gaming Commission, which oversees all regional OTBs.

The agency had issued a statement on Friday that it intended to fight the lawsuit.

The battle against Nassau OTB's proposal on a government level was a bipartisan one. Among the biggest opponents were Westbury Mayor Peter Cavallaro, Town of North Hempstead Supervisor Judi Bosworth and Town of Hempstead Supervisor Kate Murray. The resistance gained another strong ally on Thursday, when Norma Gonsalves, the Nassau County Legislature's presiding officer, said that OTB must "bow to the will of the people" and abandon its plan.

"I am proud that our community, as it always does when challenged, came together as one and spoke as one," said Cavallaro." I am proud of the bipartisan coalition of elected officials who came together to defend our community."

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