FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

Contact:
Virginia Appel
Village Administrator
516-326-6300

TESTIMONY
Trustee James Rhatigan

Comments to the NYS Senate

Committee on Racing, Wagering & Gaming

October 1, 2007

        Senator Larkin, and distinguished members of the Senate Committee, let me first thank you all for recognizing the importance of community input toward your upcoming decisions that may well affect racing and gaming in New York, as well as our communities, for decades to come. Your coming here today further underscores your dedication to seeking feedback from all affected areas.

            I would also wish to recognize our regional and local leaders who have championed the cause of the communities adjoining Belmont Park and who continue to work tirelessly on behalf of our resident and business interests.

            I would wish to recognize a few of the members of my community who have come here today, so that they may be known to the committee for their particular interest in this subject.

-----     NAME PERSONS ATTENDING   -------

            Rather than taking the committees time at this forum, to recite a list of needs, desires and concerns I would ask to submit, for the committee’s review, the statement of principals developed by Floral Park’s Task Force for Belmont Preservation and Improvement. Please note that this document that has been recently produced as a result of the brief notice of this hearing and thus bears an abbreviated scope of community input. For this reason we would ask your indulgence to our request to submit future comments to the Committee as additional information is made known to us.  Please also note that while our statement of principals have been developed solely within the Floral Park community, that we have reviewed and considered information distributed, on this subject, by our nearby neighboring communities as well as that of the Saratoga Springs community. Our statement of principals, we believe, echo and are, for the most, consistent with the needs and concerns addressed by them.

            I would wish to bring to your attention at this time the somewhat unique educational structure of Floral Park and its’ neighboring communities. Children of our communities in kindergarten through sixth grade attend schools administered by four separate and independent school districts. Children from these four component districts move onto Grade 7 to 12 junior / senior high schools administered by the Sewanhaka Central High School District.

            While some may point to the special challenges presented by such an arrangement, we prefer to focus on the collective successes of our students and the shared needs of the component areas. The beautiful building we are meeting in today, as a matter of fact, would not have been possible without the help and cooperation of the collective communities. I would ask that you take note of this special relationship as you come to deliberations relating to aid for affected communities.

            I understand that at a prior hearing of the Committee it was noted that you seek to hear thoughts towards the placement of Video Lottery Terminals, or VLT’s, at Belmont Park. Speaking for the Floral Park community, I would say that at this stage we are not able to provide an informed opinion on this subject. Our community certainly recognizes the desire to enhance revenue associated with Belmont Park and we would be most appreciative of tax relief that then would be provided should favorable revenue projections come to be but, at this time, it has yet to be shown that such future revenue would be sufficient to offset the potential adverse effects to our communities.

            We would rather, at this time, suggest that the Committee direct the “forthwith” placement of the already approved VLT’s at Aqueduct and then after a period of full implementation, that the subject of Belmont VLT placement is revisited so that your Committee and our communities can make a sound and reasoned judgment.

            It is hoped that our lack of a definitive opinion toward VLT’s at this time not be viewed as a lack of desire on our part to see an appropriate and expeditious resolution to the award of the racing franchise. We very much wish to build upon our neighborly relationship with NYRA or establish same should another bidder be selected.

            When all is considered I believe that all affected communities share common desires –  safety and security for our residents, support for and the success of our students, and the continuation of, as best as is possible, the peaceful environment that we have chosen to call home.

            Thank you for giving me the opportunity to address you today and thank you for your deliberative attention toward this important topic.           

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                                                       Inc. Village of Floral Park

Task Force for Belmont’s Preservation and Improvement

Statement of Principals

COMMUNITIES THAT PROVIDE SO MUCH DESERVE MUCH IN RETURN  

I.  The neighboring communities that shoulder the greatest burdens are to be guaranteed the greatest benefits.

PRESERVE AND PROTECT RACING AND OUR COMMUNITIES ALIKE 

II.  The neighboring communities support the preservation and fostering of the world class premier thoroughbred racing facilities within their neighborhood.  The communities encourage the protection and incorporation of all buildings and landscaped features of historic, architectural or cultural significance into the local communities visioning, economic or historic planning. 

PLAN AND PROVIDE NEW STATE OF THE ART INFRASTRUCTURE                     

III.  In order to achieve that goal, there must be a plan in place for a state of the art infrastructure and facilities worthy of being called the nation's premier venues for thoroughbred racing and a source of community pride.  Such modernization of the infrastructure must encompass and be projected into the surrounding neighborhoods in which such world class entertainment facilities are situated. This includes a complete updated inventory and evaluation for updating of roads, state of the art water, sewer, water recharge basins and electrical systems both within and surrounding these facilities.  From user friendly sidewalks and lighting to new estate fencing, the facilities must be able to compete with and be comparable to the support already provided or committed to other major entertainment facilities in the State of New York such as the new Major League Baseball facilities at Yankee Stadium in the Bronx, the new Citi Field in Flushing Meadows Queens and the new National Basketball Association venue in Brooklyn.   

EDUCATION FUNDS MADE HERE MUST STAY HERE FIRST

IV.  Since Video Lottery Terminals will be permitted by the State of New York at one or more of the facilities, there must be an irrevocable commitment that the communities that are neighboring these three facilities receive a dedicated stream of revenue earmarked for education institutions within their communities, prior to any additional funds being distributed to educational institutions outside of those neighboring communities.  One way to ensure the neighboring communities get AT LEAST their fair share of state aid to local school districts is to require that their state aid to local school districts be AT LEAST what the overall state average is in any given year. 

PLAY BY THE SAME RULES AND 'PONY UP' A FAIR SHARE   

V.  These facilities are NOT an island, but are an integral part of the communities in which they are located.  They should be subject to the SAME rules as their neighbors, including zoning, employment, housing codes, regulations and police oversight.  The facilities should therefore contribute their FAIR SHARE for the services and infrastructure their neighboring communities make available to the facilities. This includes amounts for police, fire and sanitation services, either through actual property taxes or a similar amount even if a tax exempt status is present.  An iron-clad Payment in Lieu of Taxes [PILOT] agreement guaranteeing such a revenue stream to surrounding local political subdivisions, including the central high school and elementary school districts, should be completed.

SAFETY AND SECURITY IS A NECESSITY NOT A LUXURY

VI.  The safety and security for the facilities and their neighboring communities must be maintained and increased.  Safety includes the safe inflow and outflow of traffic to and from the facilities whether the sites are hosting an event or conducting ongoing operations.  Security should include use of state of the art technology, including requiring proper identification of all individuals permitted in the non-public areas at the facilities. In addition, as these facilities have already been designated as staging areas should an emergency or natural disaster take place, there must be state of art readiness and facilities in place.  

BE A GOOD NEIGHBOR TO YOUR NEIGHBORS

VII.  The neighboring communities that have existed in peaceful co-existence with these facilities for decades should have their right to the quiet enjoyment of their neighborhoods respected and continued to be maintained.  Those areas that are natural park like settings must continue to be maintained.  There must be a comprehensive facilities management plan addressing both modernization and preservation plans and must include design guidelines, based upon generally acceptable community standards, to be used in the development of individual capital and maintenance projects.  Any proposed material change in the nature or time of operations at the facilities must be fully disclosed and reviewed with the neighboring communities prior to such a change.  

BE AN ECONOMIC ENGINE FOR YOUR COMMUNITIES

VIII.  The facilities must continue to be an economic engine generating jobs and business for the communities in which each is located, It must be ensured that local residents and businesses are protected from any adverse economic impact as a result of activities at the facilities.  Local residents should be given preference in hiring at the facilities, and local businesses be given preferred status, including as suppliers, vendors and service providers. Creating an overall business and service center should be considered, with the goal of generating additional revenue streams to benefit the surrounding communities.    

BE A PART OF, INSTEAD OF APART FROM, YOUR NEIGHBORING COMMUNITIES 

IX.  The facilities should become an integral presence within the communities in which each is located.  This includes the support of and the participation in active civic and volunteer life as a pillar of the neighboring communities in which each facility exists.   This includes the support and participation in annual community events and the inclusion of the local communities in events taking place at each facility, including but not limited to, world renowned thoroughbred horse racing events taking place at the facilities. This also includes providing, at little or no cost, facilities and recreational areas to groups and organizations in the surrounding communities.  

TRANSPARENT RESPONSIVE OVERSIGHT CREATES COMMUNITY TRUST

X.  The neighboring communities must be involved and considered in any significant change of operations or activities at the facilities.  The facilities must be subject to formal local oversight and review to consider all proposed additions, renovations or demolitions at the sites. There should be the establishment of a corporate ethics compliance official and a local community liaison who will be available to the surrounding communities to ensure implementation of both the letter and spirit of this Statement of Principals.                            

10/1/2007