16 THE QUEENS COURIER • MAY 21, 2020 FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM
сoronavirus
Court upholds Cuomo’s executive order canceling QBP special election
BY ANGÉLICA ACEVEDO
aacevedo@schnepsmedia.com
@QNS
Queens borough president candidate
Jim Quinn is now off the ballot aft er a
court upheld Governor Andrew Cuomo’s
executive order to cancel the special election.
Photo courtesy of Jim Quinn’s campaign Photo courtesy of Dao Yin campaign
Belmont Park redevelopment project gets green light as judge tosses two lawsuits
BY BILL PARRY
bparry@schnepsmedia.com
@QNS
Th e $1.3 Belmont Park redevelopment
plan that will build a new 19,000-seat
hockey arena for the New York Islanders
is moving forward aft er a state Supreme
Court Justice dismissed lawsuits by several
civic groups and the Village of Floral
Park.
Th e state project includes a 250-room
hotel and a 435,000-square-foot retail
space which was under construction adjacent
to the racetrack’s grandstand.
Th e project broke ground last August
but work was suspended aft er Governor
Andrew Cuomo suspended nonessential
construction work as part of the state’s
response to the COVID-19 pandemic. It is
not clear when construction will resume.
Th e lawsuits opposed the size and scope
of the project that would inundate the
area with traffi c and create noise and light
pollution in residential areas. In court
papers fi led May 12, Justice Roy S. Mahon
ruled the village had “not shown that it
has suff ered an injury, in fact, distinct
from that of the general public.”
Th e ruling eliminates all legal challenges
against Empire State Development
Development Corporation which is overseeing
the project.
“Earlier this week, both lawsuits against
the Belmont Park Redevelopment Project
were wholly dismissed, representing
a decisive victory for smart economic
development and validating ESD’s vigorous
environmental review and robust
public engagement process,” Empire State
Development Acting Commissioner and
President Eric Gertler said. “We look forward
to continuing this project, which
will deliver thousands of jobs and billions
in economic activity to the downstate
region, which are needed now more
than ever.”
As the metropolitan recovers from the
economic devastation brought on by the
coronavirus pandemic, the construction
is expected to create 10,000 jobs and generate
$2.7 billion in economic activity.
Aft er its completion, the project is
expected to sustain 3,200 new full-time
jobs, produce $858 million in annual economic
activity and generate tens of millions
of dollars in new annual tax revenue,
according to the governor’s offi ce.
Floral Park Mayor Dominick Longobardi
said in a statement that while the court
recognized the Village of Floral Park’s
“legitimate concerns” with the scope of
the Belmont Project and the Belmont
Project’s impact on Village residents, the
court determined that it may not “substitute
its judgment” for the judgment of the
Empire State Development Corp.
“Of course we are disappointed with the
judge’s conclusion and believe ESD’s failure
to require meaningful mitigation of
the very obvious and signifi cant negative
impacts that the Belmont Project poses to
the surrounding communities warrants
that this project needs to be re-evaluated
and scaled back,” Longobardi said. “While
we still believe that the development of a
shopping mall at this time is ill-conceived,
we will continue to monitor the development
of this project as it moves forward
and work tirelessly to ensure any eff ects
on our quality of life are minimized to the
greatest extent possible.”
Quinn, the former Queens Assistant
District Attorney who was running on a
law and order platform, only fi led petitions
for the special election and not the
June 23 primary, leaving him out of the
race.
Th e special election was originally
scheduled for March 24 by Mayor Bill de
Blasio, but was later postponed until June
23 due to COVID-19. Cuomo then canceled
it with an executive order on Friday,
April 24, in an eff ort to fi ght the spread of
COVID-19.
A spokesperson for Quinn told QNS he
is considering his options on whether or
not to appeal the decision.
“We were disappointed in the decision,
particularly in light of the fact
that the judge agreed with the merits of
our case that canceling the election was
extreme and unnecessary,” his spokesperson
said.
Quinn said that the outright cancellation
of the election was an “unnecessary
abuse of power that deprives voters of
their rights,” adding that Cuomo could’ve
just adopted the absentee voting option
that is already taking place for other elections
on that date.
He related the issue to that of the
Democratic presidential primary election
in June, which a federal judge ordered to
reinstate following a lawsuit from former
U.S. presidential candidate Andrew Yang
and his delegates.
But the court gathered that the two
issues diff er. In their decision, the court
stated the special election will serve only
to fi ll a non-legislative and non-executive
position for six months and that there is
already an appointed individual — Acting
Queens Borough President Sharon Lee —
serving in the role until the general election
takes place in November.
“Th is is clearly unlike Yang, where
the import of canceling a presidential
primary election would have excluded
large numbers of delegates from the 2020
Democratic Party Convention,” the court
wrote. “Furthermore, this court cannot
ignore the fact that, as Governor Cuomo’s
order to cancel the election indicates,
by bringing more people into the polling
places on June 23, 2020, there is an
enhanced chance that more people will
contract and spread COVID-19.”
Th e court, which held the hearing for
the case on May 14, also cited how diffi -
cult it would be for the Board of Elections
to switch course and produce ballots as
well as meet other requirements prior to
the June 23 election.
Additionally, the court pointed to
Quinn’s own decision not to petition for
the primary and his delay in bringing the
lawsuit as he fi led it several weeks aft er
Cuomo issues his executive order — and
aft er Yang won his lawsuit in reinstating
the presidential primary.
“Granting Quinn’s relief in light of
his own delay results in hardship … and
is well outside the expeditious measures
set forth in the Election Law,” the court
wrote.
Th e court also took note of how the
other fi ve other candidates, Councilmen
Costa Constantinides and Donovan
Richards, former Councilwoman
Elizabeth Crowley and former NYPD offi -
cer Anthony Miranda, didn’t fi ght the
decision and adjusted their campaigns.
But Quinn wasn’t the only candidate who
fi led a lawsuit against Cuomo — Queens
businessman Dao Yin also fi led a lawsuit
shortly aft er Quinn on Friday, May 8. But
unlike Quinn, Yin remains on the ballot.
“We sought to assist Jim Quinn in his
attempt to get back on the ballot in the
special election, and given that he has
sacrifi ced so much to run for offi ce, it is
unfortunate that he is now out of the race,”
said Yin.
Th e court’s decision goes for both of the
lawsuits, although they varied somewhat.
One of Yin’s main concerns were about
the thousands of votes that were already
cast during early voting in March, before
Mayor Bill de Blasio postponed the special
election for June in an eff ort to stop
the further spread of COVID-19.
“We are disappointed by the court’s
decision, which rests on a related lawsuit
fi led by another candidate and does
not address the particular facts of Dao
Yin’s case,” said Aaron Foldenauer, Dao
Yin’s attorney and campaign manager.
“Unfortunately, the decision will be used
as supporting precedent if any other politician,
including Donald Trump, ever
seeks to cancel an election on account of
an alleged emergency.”
A Board of Elections spokesperson
declined to comment on the issue
and Cuomo’s offi ce did not respond to a
request for comment.
Courtesy of New York Arena Partners
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