Thursday, March 7, 2019
Sunday, April 21, 2019
| Track Code | Track Name | Entry | Scratch | 1st Post ET | 1st Post Local | Time Zone | Stakes Race(s) | Stakes Grade | T.V. Indicator |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GG | GOLDEN GATE FIELDS | 48 | 24 | 3:45 PM | 12:45 PM | PDT | |||
| LS | LONE STAR PARK | 72 | 0 | 3:35 PM | 2:35 PM | CDT | |||
| SA | SANTA ANITA PARK | 72 | 24 | 3:30 PM | 12:30 PM | PDT | |||
| SUN | SUNLAND PARK | 168 | 0 | 2:30 PM | 12:30 PM | MDT | |||
| WO | WOODBINE | 72 | 48 |
Islanders owner insists arena at Belmont Park is ‘on schedule’ although amazon cuomo violates the rights of nassau bettors until he opens nassau otb so we may bet great racing. see ny const art 1 sec 3
Thursday, March 7, 2019
Sunday, April 21, 2019
| Track Code | Track Name | Entry | Scratch | 1st Post ET | 1st Post Local | Time Zone | Stakes Race(s) | Stakes Grade | T.V. Indicator |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GG | GOLDEN GATE FIELDS | 48 | 24 | 3:45 PM | 12:45 PM | PDT | |||
| LS | LONE STAR PARK | 72 | 0 | 3:35 PM | 2:35 PM | CDT | |||
| SA | SANTA ANITA PARK | 72 | 24 | 3:30 PM | 12:30 PM | PDT | |||
| SUN | SUNLAND PARK | 168 | 0 | 2:30 PM | 12:30 PM | MDT | |||
| WO | WOODBINE | 72 | 48 |
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Though it is unclear if they'll go back to the Nassau Coliseum full-time in the meantime, Islanders ownership insists their new arena at Belmont Park will be ready for the 2021-22 season.AP
There is no reason to panic about the process that is predictably dragging through the political sphere as the Islanders try to develop a new arena at Belmont Park.
“Everything is moving forward on schedule,” owner Jon Ledecky told The Post during his team’s 5-2 loss to the Flyers at the Coliseum on Saturday night.
That means the club is still planning on playing there for the start of the 2021-22 season, which has been the plan all along. The fact is that there is an undercurrent of anxiety among the fan base, the members of which have been beaten and battered for just about two decades, and that sense of dread has been transferred to this new arena project, which was awarded to the Islanders development group in December 2017.
Running the show is Empire State Development (ESD), which has conducted many surveys and polls, from environmental impact to traffic studies. It also has held town hall meetings for those citizens who live nearby, mostly in Elmont and Floral Park, and those have become a platform for small protests against the project.
Yet all of this was apparently considered when establishing a timeline for the new arena to open, and that hasn’t changed despite some pushback.
“The ESD is in charge of the actual schedule,” Ledecky said, “and they’re on schedule and we’re on schedule with them.”
There are certainly reasonable concerns about the project, most notably the possible interference with emergency vehicles. But as most of the attention has gone to those who are complaining, there is a rising voice for those who support the project.
That momentum was evident with a petition started by Long Island resident Patrick Dowd, who said he collected about 3,500 signatures in just two days in support of what he is calling “The Road to Belmont.” Dowd was invited into the alumni suite on Saturday night, and was passionate about his proposal.
“We want to make sure this project gets done,” Dowd said. “Bottom line is this is very important to everybody. I feel that if we put this out there, then it might just seal the deal.”
The point is to counter the negativity that has inevitably come with the proposal of the project. This is still the same Nassau County citizenry which shot down a referendum in August 2011 to fund $400 million for a new arena at the Coliseum site — that after previous Islanders owner Charles Wang tried to privately fund a $1 billion development project called “The Lighthouse,” which was killed on arrival by uncompromising county politicians.
That is what led the Islanders into this arena mess, moving to Brooklyn’s Barclays Center for the 2015-16 season, which turned out to be an unhappy marriage. Things finally came to a head and the team managed to get approval to play half its home games this season back at the refurbished Coliseum, which is pretty much a $170 million new coat of paint on the same antiquated and crumbling building.
Yet it is still a better home ice for the Islanders than Brooklyn. The league was smart enough to realize that while making the decision that if the Islanders make the playoffs — and despite their recent struggles, they are still battling for first place in the Metropolitan Division with 14 games to go — their first-round home games would be played at the Coliseum. If they advance, then the money-grab comes with the rest of the postseason being at Barclays Center.
It’s an untenable situation, and it could lead to the team returning to the Coliseum full-time for the next two seasons while the arena at Belmont is being built. But, as the NHL pointed out in its release about the split playoff sites, “the Nassau Coliseum does not qualify as an NHL major league facility.”
Which is why so many fans think it’s important for the construction schedule to be upheld and for shovels to get in the ground by the expected time this May or June. So far, things are still on schedule, and Dowd, for one, thinks it’s important it stays that way.
“The reason we’re trying to promote this is that it’s important for Islanders fans,” he said, “and it’s important for Long Island.”
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