Nassau County Legislature's Rules Committee approves Sands lease agreement

The Nassau County Rules Committee approved the proposed lease agreement on July 22 for the Las Vegas Sands to have control of the Nassau Coliseum and its surrounding property in Uniondale.

The meeting, held at the Nassau County Executive Building in Mineola, drew a large crown of supporters, as well as people opposed to the agreement.

“At the end of the day, I will never stand back when you jeopardize the economic certainty of the working families of Nassau County and Long Island,” Ryan Stanton, executive director of the Long Island Federation of Labor, said.

Two different items were voted on at the afternoon  meeting. The first was an operational lease that would allow Sands to maintain the 72-acre property for up to 42 years. It does not give the company permission to develop on the site. The agreement was approved by a 5-1 vote.

The second was an ordinance that would begin the State Environmental Quality Review Act. SEQRA requires environmental reviews to be conducted in order to examine the environmental impacts of any projects developing across the state.

This review could take from six to eight months, and it would lead to a new lease agreement for Sands to begin developing on the site. The committee unanimously ruled in favor of the ordinance.

Prior to the meeting, supporters of the agreement gathered in front of the Executive Building to rally support for the proposal.

“We want to make sure that those 400 jobs are actually protected,” Matthew Aracich, president of the Building and Construction Trades Council of Nassau and Suffolk Counties, said.

The full County Legislature will put the Sands lease proposal to a final vote on Aug. 5.