NASSAU OTB IS OPEN 365 DAYS OF THE YEAR SO BETTORS, EVEN INDIANS OR GREEKS CAN BET WHENEVER THEY WISH
In a 2-1 decision, the appeals court said New York state and Southampton Town should re-argue their case against the Shinnecock Indian Nation before a state judge, because the federal judge who decided the case against the tribe five years ago didn't have jurisdiction.
Beverly Jensen, director of communications for the Shinnecock Indian Nation, said the tribe was "gratified" to learn about the judgement.
"We again ask Governor [Andrew] Cuomo to sit down with the Nation to discuss how the Nation and the state can move forward together," she said in a written statement.
A spokeswoman for Attorney General Eric Schneiderman said the office was reviewing the decision and declined to comment further. Mr. Cuomo's office didn't immediately return calls seeking comment.
A spokeswoman for Southampton Town declined to comment.
"The town does find the decision disappointing," said Michael Cohen, an attorney representing Southampton Town. "We're still studying it. We will evaluate our options as we move ahead."
The dispute began about 10 years ago, when the Shinnecocks began clearing trees and brush on a vacant 80-acre property known as Westwoods in the hamlet of Hampton Bays in preparation to build a 61,000-square-foot casino there.
The state and town sued the tribe in order to stop the development, and the tribe had the case moved from state to federal court.
U.S. District Court Judge Joseph F. Bianco later ruled that even though the tribe owns Westwoods, it isn't counted as sovereign "Indian lands," like the nearby tribal reservation, and thus isn't immune from state and local building regulations.
The tribe received federal recognition in 2010, and has long been seeking a site on Long Island to build a hotel and casino.
It has cycled through potential sites like Belmont State Park in Elmont; Enterprise Park at Calverton, the former Grumman Aerospace Corp. property; and Brookhaven Calabro Airport in Shirley, but all of the proposals so far have been thwarted by obstacles or passed over by the tribe.
The appeals court said that even though the case involved questions of federal Indian law, the core questions were those of state and town gambling and environmental regulations, and thus state court was the correct venue. Neither side had argued for a change of venue during the appeal.
In the decade since the case began, the Shinnecocks have stated that they no longer want to build a casino at Westwoods, and instead have been considering sites farther west on Long Island.
Mr. Cohen said Southampton still cares about the case because it wants to establish that zoning laws must be followed on the property.
"The implications extend beyond gaming," he said.
Stop scratching on holidays
Off Track Betting in New York State has been racing into a crisis called shrinking revenue. Some people have spitballed a solution: Don’t close on holidays.
New York State Racing Law bars racing on Christmas, Easter and Palm Sunday, and the state has ruled OTBs can’t handle action on those days, even though they could easily broadcast races from out of state.
“You should be able to bet whenever you want,” said Jackson Leeds, a Nassau OTB employee who makes an occasional bet. He added some irrefutable logic: “How is the business going to make money if you’re not open to take people’s bets?”
Elias Tsekerides, president of the Federation of Hellenic Societies of Greater New York, said OTB is open on Greek Orthodox Easter and Palm Sunday.
“I don’t want discrimination,” Tsekerides said. “They close for the Catholics, but open for the Greek Orthodox? It’s either open for all or not open.”
OTB officials have said they lose millions by closing on Palm Sunday alone, with tracks such as Gulfstream, Santa Anita, Turf Paradise and Hawthorne running.
One option: OTBs could just stay open and face the consequences. New York City OTB did just that back in 2003. The handle was about $1.5 million – and OTB was fined $5,000.
Easy money.
Casino Ruling Struck Down
more in New York »
By WILL JAMES
The Second U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Monday struck down a 2007 federal court decision barring a Long Island American Indian tribe from building a casino in Southampton, remanding the case to state court instead.In a 2-1 decision, the appeals court said New York state and Southampton Town should re-argue their case against the Shinnecock Indian Nation before a state judge, because the federal judge who decided the case against the tribe five years ago didn't have jurisdiction.
Beverly Jensen, director of communications for the Shinnecock Indian Nation, said the tribe was "gratified" to learn about the judgement.
"We again ask Governor [Andrew] Cuomo to sit down with the Nation to discuss how the Nation and the state can move forward together," she said in a written statement.
A spokeswoman for Attorney General Eric Schneiderman said the office was reviewing the decision and declined to comment further. Mr. Cuomo's office didn't immediately return calls seeking comment.
A spokeswoman for Southampton Town declined to comment.
"The town does find the decision disappointing," said Michael Cohen, an attorney representing Southampton Town. "We're still studying it. We will evaluate our options as we move ahead."
The dispute began about 10 years ago, when the Shinnecocks began clearing trees and brush on a vacant 80-acre property known as Westwoods in the hamlet of Hampton Bays in preparation to build a 61,000-square-foot casino there.
The state and town sued the tribe in order to stop the development, and the tribe had the case moved from state to federal court.
U.S. District Court Judge Joseph F. Bianco later ruled that even though the tribe owns Westwoods, it isn't counted as sovereign "Indian lands," like the nearby tribal reservation, and thus isn't immune from state and local building regulations.
The tribe received federal recognition in 2010, and has long been seeking a site on Long Island to build a hotel and casino.
It has cycled through potential sites like Belmont State Park in Elmont; Enterprise Park at Calverton, the former Grumman Aerospace Corp. property; and Brookhaven Calabro Airport in Shirley, but all of the proposals so far have been thwarted by obstacles or passed over by the tribe.
The appeals court said that even though the case involved questions of federal Indian law, the core questions were those of state and town gambling and environmental regulations, and thus state court was the correct venue. Neither side had argued for a change of venue during the appeal.
In the decade since the case began, the Shinnecocks have stated that they no longer want to build a casino at Westwoods, and instead have been considering sites farther west on Long Island.
Mr. Cohen said Southampton still cares about the case because it wants to establish that zoning laws must be followed on the property.
"The implications extend beyond gaming," he said.
HI-
Thanks for the help. The item’s below. I’d be happy to mail you a copy, if you give me a mailing address.
Claude Solnik
(631) 913-4244
Long Island Business News
2150 Smithtown Ave.
Ronkonkoma, NY 11779-7348
Home > LI Confidential > Stop scratching on holidays
Stop scratching on holidays
Published: June 1, 2012
Off Track Betting in New York State has been racing into a crisis called shrinking revenue. Some people have spitballed a solution: Don’t close on holidays.
New York State Racing Law bars racing on Christmas, Easter and Palm Sunday, and the state has ruled OTBs can’t handle action on those days, even though they could easily broadcast races from out of state.
“You should be able to bet whenever you want,” said Jackson Leeds, a Nassau OTB employee who makes an occasional bet. He added some irrefutable logic: “How is the business going to make money if you’re not open to take people’s bets?”
Elias Tsekerides, president of the Federation of Hellenic Societies of Greater New York, said OTB is open on Greek Orthodox Easter and Palm Sunday.
“I don’t want discrimination,” Tsekerides said. “They close for the Catholics, but open for the Greek Orthodox? It’s either open for all or not open.”
OTB officials have said they lose millions by closing on Palm Sunday alone, with tracks such as Gulfstream, Santa Anita, Turf Paradise and Hawthorne running.
One option: OTBs could just stay open and face the consequences. New York City OTB did just that back in 2003. The handle was about $1.5 million – and OTB was fined $5,000.
Easy money.
Casino Ruling Struck Down
more in New York »
By WILL JAMES
The Second U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Monday struck down a 2007 federal court decision barring a Long Island American Indian tribe from building a casino in Southampton, remanding the case to state court instead.In a 2-1 decision, the appeals court said New York state and Southampton Town should re-argue their case against the Shinnecock Indian Nation before a state judge, because the federal judge who decided the case against the tribe five years ago didn't have jurisdiction.
Beverly Jensen, director of communications for the Shinnecock Indian Nation, said the tribe was "gratified" to learn about the judgement.
"We again ask Governor [Andrew] Cuomo to sit down with the Nation to discuss how the Nation and the state can move forward together," she said in a written statement.
A spokeswoman for Attorney General Eric Schneiderman said the office was reviewing the decision and declined to comment further. Mr. Cuomo's office didn't immediately return calls seeking comment.
A spokeswoman for Southampton Town declined to comment.
"The town does find the decision disappointing," said Michael Cohen, an attorney representing Southampton Town. "We're still studying it. We will evaluate our options as we move ahead."
The dispute began about 10 years ago, when the Shinnecocks began clearing trees and brush on a vacant 80-acre property known as Westwoods in the hamlet of Hampton Bays in preparation to build a 61,000-square-foot casino there.
The state and town sued the tribe in order to stop the development, and the tribe had the case moved from state to federal court.
U.S. District Court Judge Joseph F. Bianco later ruled that even though the tribe owns Westwoods, it isn't counted as sovereign "Indian lands," like the nearby tribal reservation, and thus isn't immune from state and local building regulations.
The tribe received federal recognition in 2010, and has long been seeking a site on Long Island to build a hotel and casino.
It has cycled through potential sites like Belmont State Park in Elmont; Enterprise Park at Calverton, the former Grumman Aerospace Corp. property; and Brookhaven Calabro Airport in Shirley, but all of the proposals so far have been thwarted by obstacles or passed over by the tribe.
The appeals court said that even though the case involved questions of federal Indian law, the core questions were those of state and town gambling and environmental regulations, and thus state court was the correct venue. Neither side had argued for a change of venue during the appeal.
In the decade since the case began, the Shinnecocks have stated that they no longer want to build a casino at Westwoods, and instead have been considering sites farther west on Long Island.
Mr. Cohen said Southampton still cares about the case because it wants to establish that zoning laws must be followed on the property.
"The implications extend beyond gaming," he said.
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