Las Vegas Sands drops bid to open $4B casino complex at Nassau Coliseum site
Las Vegas Sands has withdrawn its planned bid to open a $4 billion casino complex at the site of the Nassau Coliseum on Long Island.The gaming giant’s announcement Wednesday caught some casino industry insiders by surprise.“Crazy,” one industry source said.Sands had the strong political support of Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman and the Republican-run legislature — but there was some hard-core opposition led by nearby Hofstra University and residents living near the Nassau Coliseum hub in Uniondale.“Hofstra University is pleased with Las Vegas Sand’s decision to abandon their application for a license to build a casino at the Nassau Coliseum.Over the past 90 years, Hofstra has been deeply invested in the future of this region, and we are eager to be a part of planning for development in the Nassau Hub that would promote, sustainable economic growth, enhance the quality of life for all who live and work here, and serve the true needs of Nassau County and Long Island,” Susan Poser, Hofstra University President, said in a statement to The Post.In a statement, Sands said it wanted to focus its financial resources elsewhere and expressed concern about legislation introduced in New York to legalize internet or i-Gaming.“For Las Vegas Sands, we believe the highest and best use of our capital in the near term is to purchase Las Vegas Sands and Sands China shares,” the gaming company said.“Accordingly, Sands has decided not to bid for a casino license in New York.”While headquartered in Vegas, all of Sands’ gambling operations are in Asia — with five in China-controlled Macao and one in Singapore.Sands’ withdrawal comes at a time of a tariff war between the US and China, putting the gaming giant in a difficult position with so much of its business dependent on licenses overseen by the communist country, one industry source said.Last April, a top Sands Casino official ripped New York gaming regulators for a “confusing” years-long review...