With the Islanders scheduled to head off to the Brooklyn’s Barclays Center in 2015, four developers will be presenting their projects next week to vie for the chance to remodel the Nassau Coliseum.
The bidders include Bruce Ratner, who built the Barclays Center; the Madison Square Garden Company, which owns the Garden, the Knicks, and the Rangers; Ed Blumenfield, President and Founder of Blumenfield Development Group of Syosset; and Bernard Shereck, CEO of New York Sports & Entertainment.
Each will present their respective plans to the Business Advisory Council, which consists of 17 private-sector business executives put together by Nassau County Executive Edward Mangano in 2010 to promote local investment. The council will then provide Mangano with input on the bidders’ plans after reviewing the presentations.
"The meeting will provide business advisers and the media an opportunity to preview the four plans submitted to transform the Coliseum into an exciting new family, sports and entertainment venue for Nassau County," Mangano said in a statement.
This new family-oriented venue would include such changes as downsizing the 16,000-seat Coliseum to an 8,000-12,000-seat arena for a more intimate venue for family concerts and shows, as well as minor league sporting events. In addition, Mangano has said that he is looking for a design that would include a revamped exterior, wider concourse, new restaurants, and upgraded bathroom facilities.
The winning bidder would lease the Coliseum to the county, who would continue to own the land, and they would make an annual rental payment to Nassau County based on a percentage of the venue’s revenue.
Mangano is expected to decide the future of the Coliseum by mid-July.
Last week it was announced that the Isles may be moving to the Barclays Center early, which would entail starting their 2014 season in Brooklyn. No definitive statements have been made yet.