No VLT casino in Inwood

Following a community uproar and calls from elected officials and civic leaders, Joseph Cairo, the president of Nassau County Off-Track Betting, said that the location his organization was considering as a site to put a video lottery terminal casino as well as another parcel that was named are not where OTB will put the facility.
“Someone approached us four or five months ago about a parcel, we took a preliminary look at it and concluded it was not the right location,” said Cairo, referring to a property off the Nassau Expressway near Rockaway Turnpike. “A week ago Friday I called Rabbi (Mordechai) Kamenetzky and told him we were not interested in Inwood, he was pleased.”
Kamenetzky, dean of Yeshiva of South Shore in Hewlett, said that he heard a rumor about the casino and that prompted him to make a few phone calls. “I personally received a return call from Joseph Cairo, the president of Nassau OTB and in addition spoke directly to Nassau County Legislator, Howard Kopel. Both of them assured me, unequivocally, that there would be no casino coming to the Five Towns, Kamenetzky said.
Cairo said that the former county Department of Public Works site on Alemeda Street off Bayview Avenue was never considered. He would not disclose what sites are now being considered, but there are “many locations” and “we haven’t made a decision.”
The OTB president “absolutely” believes that a VLT casino would generate millions of dollars and would be “highly successful.” The county said that the casino could generate $20 million annually, which is the figure that was included in County Executive Ed Mangano’s proposed 2016 budget.

Cairo said emphasized that this facility is not a Las Vegas-type casino with blackjack and other gambling games, but one with just the VLT terminals. A gaming expert is expected to be brought in to advise OTB on how best to proceed with its plans, he said.

Community opposition
When it was learned that Inwood could be the site of a VLT casino, community members became incensed. Waterfront Boulevard resident Tom Caracciolo, who has lived in the same house for 64 years said that the DPW location was a terrible idea. “There is no way we could handle that amount of traffic,” he said. “The streets around here are narrow.”
Though both locations are not in District 7, both incumbent County Legislator Howard Kopel (R-Lawrence) and his opponent, Democrat Tova Plaut, voiced their objections to a casino in Inwood.
Kopel said that he takes a dim view of budget projections and was skeptical of having such a facility in Inwood. Kopel, was one of the elected officials who called Cairo and said that he was opposed the casino sites. He cited the traffic congestion in the area and said unless the plan calls for alleviating the problem it would be a “total disaster” for the area.
Plaut opposed the casino in Inwood from the first she heard of it. “The casino in Inwood is not a good idea,” she said, noting how an increase in traffic would impact the residents quality of life.
Along with County Legislator Carrié Solages (D-Elmont), who is like Kopel is running for re-election, Plaut organized an opposition rally last Sunday.
“There is no place for a casino anywhere in Nassau County but few places could be less appropriate that the tight-knit Five Towns community,” Solages said in a release.