North Hempstead extends Long Island Nets' contract to practice at New Cassel facility

North Hempstead has renewed its contract with the Long Island Nets that allows the G League basketball team to continue practicing at the town's Yes We Can Community Center in New Cassel.

The Nets will pay the town a minimum licensing fee of $58,000 under the new agreement, which runs through April, with the potential for more revenue depending on usage. The base fee is down from $72,000 in the prior contract. If the Nets hold 10 clinics during the term of the contract, they will get a $7,500 credit from the town, Councilman Robert Troiano told Newsday.

The team, which is affiliated with the NBA's Brooklyn Nets, has practiced at the facility since 2017. The 60,000-square-foot center opened in September 2012. The Long Island Nets play home games at  Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum  in Uniondale. 

Town spokesperson Umberto Mignardi said the contract offers a good deal for the community. "It’s about our kids and the longtime community partners who provide them with access to professional instruction and opportunities to build discipline, teamwork, and healthy habits,” Mignardi said in a statement.

Robert Bogle, a deputy town attorney, said during a board meeting in October that the Nets had "threatened to leave" because they could not match the $72,000 licensing fee or provide the required number of clinics under the previous contract. Bogle did not respond to a question about how many clinics had been required.

"It was either they have to walk away from the Yes We Can Center, or we come back to the table and renegotiate something that would be more amenable to them," Bogle said during the meeting. "Nassau Coliseum has been opening their doors more, so we have some competition." 

Morgan Taylor, team president of the Long Island Nets, said in a statement: “The Long Island Nets have called the Yes We Can Community Center home for nearly a decade. We consider ourselves part of the community and are thrilled to continue using the facility alongside local residents and families."

Taylor noted that the team worked with the town to "schedule practices during school-day hours, when demand is generally lower, and have added basketball, dance and adaptive sports clinics, along with player community appearances. We value our relationship with the community and remain committed to being a positive partner.”

Access issues

Access to the center has been a source of tension between the town and community, Troiano, whose district includes the community center, said in an interview. Even before it was built, residents peppered him with questions.

"Is it going to be for the community?" Troiano, of Westbury, said he was repeatedly asked. "If the town's building it, the town's going to maintain control of it. And they're going to be the ones to decide who gets to use it and what kind of programming it has."

Under the agreement, the team has exclusive use of the gym area five days per week for two to four hours at a time between the hours of 9 a.m. and 1 p.m.

"Which means that community members can't make use of it, which is a bit of a problem for me," said Troiano. "But I'm aware that during those months, and during those hours, very few community members, if any, want to use that space."

Troiano continued, "It's a fair trade-off, because the Nets are paying us money to use it, which helps to keep Yes We Can open."

Asked about tension between the town and the community surrounding the center, Mignardi said, "There’s been very little demand for the gym during those hours, so we believe this is a fair arrangement when you consider the relationship and everything the Nets give back to our community."

Nassau Legis. Viviana Russell (D-Westbury) served on the town board from 2010-21. She said in an interview that the "whole purpose of building that center was the whole community had to be front of mind when doing anything." She said there were sometimes complaints about "other entities" hoping to rent time there.

"We wanted to make sure there was access, and so that may mean, at times, not allowing an entity to rent the facility, if it meant it was going to take away from the residents, especially for a prolonged period of time," Russell said. "I know there were occasions where applications for rental were denied."

By Joshua Needelman

joshua.needelman@newsday.com

Joshua Needelman covers the Town of North Hempstead for Newsday. A Long Island native and University of Maryland graduate, his work has appeared in publications including The New York Times and The Washington Post.