Nostrand Gardens Civic Association rallies against Sands hotel and casino proposal for the Hub

Opponents of a planned luxury hotel and casino on the grounds of the Nassau Coliseum are calling for the proposal to be scrapped, arguing the $4 billion development will attract crime, traffic and gambling addiction.

More than a dozen members of the Nostrand Gardens Civic Association held a protest on Uniondale Avenue on Friday, carrying signs reading "Save Our Future" and "Say No To a Casino."

Pearl Jacobs, president of the group, Uniondale's oldest civic association, says they're not opposed to development at the Nassau Hub but contend a casino is a bad fit for an area with 40,000 students.

"These corporations have a history of bringing these sort of casinos to economically deprived communities," she said. "We have people in our community that can ill afford to spend their hard-earned money at a casino. It's going to be a loss of wealth to our communities … We're saying no for our youth. We're saying no for community."

Las Vegas Sands has proposed building a hotel with a full casino, performance venue, day spa, swimming pool, convention space, restaurants, outdoor community space and tiered parking at the Coliseum site. 

Sands officials said they'd secured agreements to take over the lease of the 72-acre Hub — the largest tract of undeveloped land in the county — and operations of the 50-year-old Coliseum. The transfer is subject to approval by the GOP-controlled Nassau County Legislature.

But Sands officials said the plan was contingent on the company receiving one of three downstate gaming licenses being granted by the state. Without the casino, the size and scope of the development could not move forward, officials said.

Ron Reese, Sands' senior vice president for global communications and corporate affairs, pointed to a host of Uniondale civic, business and cultural leaders who had already announced their support for the project.

"It's not a casino project. There is a casino in it. It's going to represent 10 percent of the gross floor space," he said. " … But this is going to drive visitation for a whole host of reasons outside of the casino. The dining. The shopping. The spa. The hotel rooms. The events. The performances."

Heidi Sanft, vice president of Nostrand Gardens Civic Association, said she's concerned about local youth becoming addicted to gambling.

"There's enough addiction in this neighborhood already," she said.

Rase Denny, another civic association member, said he'd prefer to see an education and employment training center built at the Hub.

"I'm concerned about the well-being of the children," Denny said. "I'm concerned about the well-being of the community."

A spokesman for Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman said his office had received seven complaints about the casino since the plan was announced Wednesday — not the hundreds received in 2015 when county officials proposed putting a video lottery terminal parlor at the vacant Fortunoff store in Westbury.

By Robert Brodsky

robert.brodsky@newsday.com@BrodskyRobert

Robert Brodsky is a breaking news reporter who has worked at Newsday since 2011. He is a Queens College and American University alum.