While the city council will have little say, leaders in Garden City, New York took a vote to formally oppose the proposed the Las Vegas Sands casino project at Nassau Coliseum next to Hofstra University.
At a meeting last week, the council heard from local leaders and community members before casting a vote not to support the project.
Really though, the ultimate local decision will be up to Nassau County officials and not city-level leaders. Roughly 1.4 million people reside in the county, only 23,000 of which are Garden City residents. Moreover, the proposed casino site is actually in neighboring Uniondale, though Garden City is just a couple of blocks away.
Las Vegas Sands supplied a statement to local outlet News12 about the result:
“We look forward to continuing conversations with the village of Garden City and all interested individuals to ensure that this integrated resort is a benefit to everyone.”
In addition to the support of the county government, the Sands project will also need the support of the New York Gaming Facility Location Board. However, part of the evaluation process does include the approval of a local Community Advisor Committee. These committees will be tasked with ascertaining local support for each applicant and reporting back to the board.
Right now, the request for applicants for the three downstate casino licenses is underway but still very early in the process.
