Shinnecocks show early Belmont casino plan

The Shinnecock Indian Nation has unveiled a tentative plan for a Belmont Park entertainment complex that would include a casino, hotel and a renovated rail station.

The proposal would join a modernized Long Island Rail Road station at the park's western end to a new casino/entertainment complex. That complex would adjoin the existing Belmont grandstand. Tentative plans call for a 500-room-plus hotel atop the complex to stand as high or slightly higher than the existing grandstand.

The tribe presented the plan at a meeting with Elmont residents on Thursday. However, the proposal still must get several levels of state and federal approval before it can move forward.

Sandra Smith, chairwoman for the Elmont Coalition for Sustainable Development, said response to the plan was "very positive" from the 75-plus attendees.

"Everything they had in the plan are things we've been trying to do," she said, noting a proposed park and soccer field in what is now the south parking lot, beside a new parking structure. "It was really phenomenal."

Tribal gaming authority members and officials from the tribe's development partner, Gateway Casino Resorts of Detroit, made the presentation.

Karen Hunter, a board member of the tribal gaming authority, stressed that the concept "is one of several we've been exploring," and that the tribe is still getting input from the community. A little-used land parcel north of the track is also under consideration, she said.

Hunter said residents were most interested in jobs -- the tribe said the project would generate 12,000 -- and transportation improvements, and were encouraged by the Shinnecock's desire to reopen the now-closed LIRR rail station. The move would require talks with the railroad.

"Belmont is a historical landmark for all Long Island," she said, adding the tribe would maintain that status and design with any new facility. "I was ecstatic at the warm reception we received."

The tribe also proposed fixing flooding problems at the Floral Park-Bellerose School, which sits just north of Belmont Park. The plan proposes a landscaped buffer and drainage system for the area to address complaints.