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QC07142016

28 The QUEE NS Courier • juLY 14, 2016 for breaking news visit www.qns.com Hotel & convention center coming to Resorts World By Charlie Perry cperry@qns.com/@QNS Resorts World Casino in South Ozone Park is looking to hit the jackpot as it plans to spend $400 million to build a new hotel and convention complex while adding 1,000 new video-lottery terminals (VLTs). According to The Wall Street Journal (WSJ), the proposal aims to add a 400-room hotel, 20,000-squarefoot spa and resort, and a minimum of 140,000 square feet of convention and meeting space. Additional room for food, retail and casino expansion have also been proposed. “The Aqueduct is the right place and Resorts Casino is the right partner to bring in jobs to the community and much-needed economic resources,” said Assemblyman Phil Goldfeder. The plan would expand Resorts World operations at Aqueduct Racetrack by 750,000 square feet. On June 27, Resorts World Casino President Ryan Eller discussed the proposal with the New York state Franchise Oversight Board. Eller expects the new complex to be opened in April 2019. A spokesman for Resorts World told the WSJ that the multimilliondollar expansion would be built on a parking lot on the west side of the casino. The expansion is currently awaiting approval from the state Franchise Oversight Board. The additional video-lottery terminals would add to the 4,500 electronic gambling machines already in operation on Resorts World grounds. While a percentage of the existing revenue from VLTs is allocated to the New York Racing Association,some of the revenue from the new VLTs will be provided to the Nassau Regional Off-Track Betting (OTB) Corporation. Nassau OTB had proposed building a VLT casino of its own at Belmont Park, but abandoned its plan after the state approved the 1,000 new VLTs at Resorts World through legislation passed this year. Nassau County is expecting to receive a minimum of $9 million in revenue from the added machines in their first year of operation, a spokesman for Norma Gonsalves, presiding officer of the Nassau County Legislator, told the WSJ. Each year after, Nassau County could receive up to $25 million, he told WSJ. Other portions of revenue generated from the electronic gambling terminals would go to the support horse racing and breeding and the state education fund. “Resorts World is already the biggest contributor to this fund in all of New York state, illustrating the popularity of the gaming facilities at this location and how expanding the opportunity to play and experience the new amenities would only lead to more crucial dollars for state education and revenue,” Senator Joseph P. Addabbo Jr. said. Photo: Ellison Bronze Photography LAWMAKER SUES CITY OVER ‘ILEGAL’ PARK NONPROFIT GROUP By Alec Posner editorial@qns.com/@QNS “It’s unacceptable, it’s illegal, and it has to stop.” These are the harsh words that Councilman Rory Lancman used when explaining why he is suing the Queens nonprofit organization Alliance for Flushing Meadows Corona Park. The Alliance was formed to secure funds from developers and other for-profit entities into Flushing Meadows Corona Park in exchange for the use of park resources — the most notable of which, Lancman said, is the area of the park itself. “The USTA needed slightly less than an acre of land to accomplish the massive expansion that it’s doing now and the Willets Point developers wanted to build a shopping center on the Citi Field parking lot, which is technically park land,” he said. The Alliance is being sued by the councilman for two reasons. First, neither Lancman nor any of the City Council members in other neighboring districts of the park were given a spot on the Alliance’s board. Administrative Code Section 18-137(b) requires that nonprofit entities such as the Alliance have as voting board members at least one representative from each overlapping council districts and one representative for each of two abutting districts. According to Lancman, Mayor Bill de Blasio — in forming the Alliance — blatantly disregarded this method of checks and balances. “They did not give board representation to me or two of the other four Council members who represent the park,” Lancman told The Courier. “It violates city charter, it violates city law, and it is not how we should be deciding which projects should be prioritized.” The other reason for the lawsuit, Lancman charged, is that the Alliance is pocketing the money it is receiving from the developers. He went on to say, “In exchange for the city approving those transactions, they got the developers and the USTA to kick in money to the Alliance. If the city is going to be commercializing public park land, that money belongs to the public … not a separate nonprofit that only has separate representation to one park land.” The Courier reached out to the mayor’s office for comment and is awaiting a response. Location of Elmhurst Popeye’s hits the market BY ALEC POSNER editorial@qns.com/@QNS The home of two restaurants located in the heart of the most highly trafficked location in Elmhurst’s retail hub is now on the market. The one-story building located at 89-30 Queens Blvd. is approximately 2,749 square feet and is currently home to a Popeye’s on one side and Pronto Pizza on the other. The building’s parking lot is about 8,931 square feet. The development is listed with Greiner-Maltz at $9 million. The site is located across the street from Queens Center Mall and down the block from Queens Place, two shopping centers boasting nationally known retailers including Macy’s, Target, BestBuy and J.C. Penney. The property is also a short walk from the Woodhaven Boulevard subway station. The property sits right next door to a multipurpose building that used to be St. John’s Hospital. The building has available apartments and has space to rent out for medical offices, schools and community services. Mo Malik, owner of the property, told The Courier he is unsure whether the new owner would honor the leases or redevelop the site upon acquiring the property. Courtesy Google Maps


QC07142016
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