Ducks reignite plans for a team in Nassau

Move over, Subway Series. Long Island may be primed for a Parkway Showdown.

As Nassau launches a search for a developer of a 6,000-seat minor league baseball stadium in Uniondale, the Central Islip-based Long Island Ducks have reignited plans to bring a team to the area.

"A Nassau-Suffolk rivalry would be explosive," said Frank Boulton, chief executive and owner of the Ducks.

The eight-team Atlantic League, in which the Ducks play, has approved a new franchise, owned by Boulton, to play in Nassau, Boulton said.

The Ducks could have competition. Deputy County Executive Rob Walker said major league clubs are interested in bringing a minor league affiliate to play at the site. While Walker declined to name the teams, the Mets told Newsday "the situation is being reviewed internally." The Yankees declined to comment.

The Mets and Ducks once pitched competing minor league parks as part of Islanders owner Charles Wang's Lighthouse Project, but the development succumbed to local opposition. David Blumenfeld, whose firm, Blumenfeld Development Group, was aligned with the previous Mets effort, said he has been in contact with the team and is examining a request for proposals released by the county on Monday.

If the Nassau legislature approves, residents will vote Aug. 1 on whether to allow the county to borrow up to $350 million to construct a new arena next to the Nassau Coliseum, and up to $50 million for the nearby ballpark.

Even if voters approve the plan, the Nassau Interim Finance Authority, a state watchdog that controls the county's finances, must approve the borrowing. NIFA said last week that it was "deeply concerned" about the plan.

The county envisions a park of the same size as the Ducks' 6,002-seat Bethpage Ballpark. The park, which would include up to 20 skyboxes, would be ready by the spring of 2013 and host roughly 70 games annually.

The site has more than 1,000 parking spaces that are used by county agencies during the day. Traffic studies were conducted previously and are under review by the county.

Proposals are due by June 16 and the county will select a winner before the referendum vote. If the proposals don't make financial sense, Nassau will scrap the plan and move forward exclusively with the Coliseum development, Walker said.

Nassau will be reimbursed for the borrowing through a revenue sharing agreement with the Islanders. The club must guarantee a minimum amount it will pay the county, regardless of the revenue collected by the team, according to the RFP. The winning bidder also must detail ticket prices, marketing, concessions and public uses for the field.

The Ducks' lease agreement with Suffolk pays the county $1 per ticket -- the team sells out most games -- and 25 percent of skybox revenues, Boulton said. Suffolk also retains the field's naming rights, 20 percent of gross concessions and 15 percent of the advertising revenue. Boulton said he expects to propose a similar arrangement for Nassau.

"The Ducks stadium has been a cash positive for the county," said Suffolk Chief Deputy County Executive Chris Kent.

But critics of publicly financed stadiums remain skeptical. "The economics of these [fields] are always unfavorable to taxpayers," said former Assemb. Richard Brodsky, a Westchester Democrat who scrutinized construction of the new Yankee Stadium.