Bridgeport Sound Tigers Not Moving To Nassau Coliseum

Ct Post: Michael Fornabaio has an interview with Charles Wang's Bridgeport Sound Tigers President , Howard Saffan on what Thursday's decision means for the future of the Sound Tigers. 

"We have a long-term contractual arrangement here. We're here another eight years,"

said Bridgeport Sound Tigers president Howard Saffan, whose Harbor Yard Sports and Entertainment also operates Bridgeport's Webster Bank Arena.

Saffan echoed what he has said every other time relocation rumors spring up.

"It's wonderful that A plus B equals C, but there's reality," Saffan said.

"It's wonderful that Barclays is the developer," Saffan said. "We wholeheartedly support that. We'll see what tomorrow brings."

NYIFC Comments:
No Bridgeport Sound Tigers at Coliseum as said all along.

Will be very interesting to see if Dolan's AHL team winds up at the Coliseum based upon this news. Either that or Ratner's group brings in his own AHL team to compete against the Islander affiliate in Bridgeport.

Since the 2010–11 season, every team in the league had an affiliation agreement with an NHL team from another organization which mean an imported Coliseum team would not represent the New York Islanders prospects. 
  
AHL.com has an updated list of current NHL/AHL affiliations. 
Here is a listing of all ECHL/NHL affiliations from Ratner to choose from if he chooses to go ECHL, and is allowed. 

Next Steps For Nassau Coliseum's Future & New York Islanders

Islanders website Announced ITV will cover live press conference Friday 11:30 from Coliseum, Charles Wang not on guest list.

LI Herald has more from Mangano & the next steps in the process here..

Ratner was unanimously picked by Mangano's business group. 

Mangano, Ratner reps will have another Coliseum press conference on Friday about possible construction dates. 

The contract is now in the hands the Nassau County Legislature. Approval requires a simple majority, and the Legislature currently holds 10 Republicans and nine Democrats, it could die there.

If it's delayed past November election, and big Dolan contributor, Tom Suozzi, wins his old job back, the agreement could be easily overturned faster than Mangano took LH off county website day one of his administration.

Suozzi had some cryptic comments on decision Thursday:

 "The bottom line," he said in response to Thursday's news, "is that this is a central piece of the county's future, and we need to make sure that this plan will come to fruition as proposed. And more importantly, we need to make sure that there's a vision for the long term to do something more ambitious than just build the new Coliseum."

If NIFA has a say, you can bet they will likely want to block anything Mangano does.

Dolan's media will go all out to make process as negative as possible, Msg statement reflected no class. 

Mangano said the lease is signed, contains all negotiated terms and conditions, “and is immediately ready for consideration and approval.” 

Mangano (video) also said there has been no discussions not in the contract not eloborating if that means the current agreement or the one with Ratner with regard to the Islanders moving earlier  

The New York Islanders would play a minimum of four games at the Coliseum that could include preseason games.


Forest City Ratner has agreed to accept all costs and responsibilities for operating, insuring, maintaining and providing utilities for the Coliseum beginning on Aug. 1, 2015, which is the expiration date of the county’s lease with the arena’s current operator, SMG.

Dolan's Msg's spokesman statement reflects Garden's usual lack of class, who was reportedly never present at one meeting, and almost won the bid from home.

Wang/Rechler did over 200 meetings for LH and spent 20m dollars. Wang ran around daily for referendum.

Mangano's no hero today, he got a great deal for Nassau County making them minor league forever, while bankrupt Detroit, and governments all over the US/Canada found a way to pay for new facilities for their professional teams.

Losing the New York Islanders goes at the top of Mangano's political resume forever between bringing in 1986 New Jersey Giant football players to celebrate their accomplishments. He helped make Long Island strictly minor league for pro sports, and lost the greatest US NHL team ever because he refused to lock the doors, and find a way to pay for a new home for a team that earned it more than most.

NYIFC Comments:
1. Forget the New York Islanders remaining at the Nassau Coliseum, that's gone forever in a 13,000 seat arena. At best a four/six game visitor, at worst, no games at all. There will be no move permanent move back to the Nassau Coliseum.

1A. We don't know where NHL stands with split home games of any kind or if that is something in Ratner's lease he must deliver or it voids agreement. 

2. Who knows where this leaves Bridgeport? Ratner could bring in his own AHL team, leaving the Soud Tigers at Ct under their binding lease at Webster Bank Arena, an ECHL team could go to Coliseum or Bridgeport.

2A. If Ratner/Yormark are smart they should want Islander AHL affiliates in Ct, Long Island, and an ECHL team up in that new Bronx arena.  Stockton, California does not help your local branding.

Wang has not commented, he may have preferred Dolan's plan for all we know as best for his hotel business? 

Ratner could call up Dolan and ask if he wants to bring the Wolfpack to the Coliseum? There are no rules here.

Bottom line a lot of steps ahead, today was part of one of one that long-term may not mean anything.

Wang was handed development rights for Lighthouse in 2004. It was overturned until 2006 when he won Master Developer Bid after D'Amato demanding open bidding which set things back for over a year, Don Monti is current master developer for HUB, this was just about Coliseum, and the two sets of land between Wang's connecting abatement next to hotel.

Our fans should have learned one thing over the years, friendships change fast in business. 

Nassau County Release On Ratner RFP Winning Bid Terms

Note-Msg issued a statement feeling it still has the best bid, and that the legislature decides otherwise on Ratner winning bid.

Nassau County Release On Ratner RFP Winning Bid by Mangano

 I am pleased to announce that Nassau Events Center, LLC is the successful proposer to transform the 43-year old Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum and Plaza into an attractive, first class destination for family fun, sports and entertainment. This is also the unanimous recommendation of the County’s RFP Committee. Accordingly, I will soon send the NEC lease to the Nassau County Legislature which is the next step in the approval process.
 
NEC will invest a minimum of $229 Million in renovating the Coliseum and the Plaza to create a first class destination. During the initial 34 year lease term, Nassau County will receive 8% of gross revenue, 12.75% of parking fees with a minimum guaranteed payment of $4 Million a year escalating by 10% every five years, resulting in a minimum lease term payment of $195 Million to the County. With options exercised, the minimum lease payment grows to $334 Million. Similarly, the Plaza area, now concrete, will be transformed and will generate the greater of $400,000 a year in rent or 8% of the gross revenue. In addition, Nassau County maintains rights for future development on the site.

Although the decision was not easy, there were points that the Committee emphasized when recommending NEC and, in an effort to continue an open and transparent process, I would like to share them with you all today. They are:

1. NEC has agreed to accept all costs and responsibility for operating, insuring, maintaining and providing utilities for the Coliseum beginning on August 1, 2015, which is when the current lease expires. This was viewed as providing a direct financial benefit to the County by eliminating millions of dollars in annual expenses for utilities, parking lot repairs and capital expenditures. Utilities alone cost Nassau over $2,000,000 last year. This will relieve the County from shouldering these expenses during the period when the developer will be seeking approvals, designing the various improvements, constructing and operating the Coliseum and Plaza area.
2. The NEC proposal includes the payment of rent during the preconstruction approvals period and the actual construction period, commencing on August 1, 2015. It is estimated that this will yield a positive cash flow to the County in the first two years of over $2,000,000 while shedding millions in expenses.
3. The minimum annual rent paid by NEC upon completion of construction for both the Coliseum and Plaza Improvements is $4,400,000, or $1,400,000 per year more than MSG’s proposal. In addition, the minimum rent under the NEC proposal escalates at the rate of 10% every five years, versus the MSG proposal of escalation of 5% every five years. Rent under the NEC proposal is calculated based on 8% gross revenues yielded by both the Coliseum and Plaza Improvements plus 12.75% of parking revenue. This was viewed as more beneficial to the County than the MSG proposal which is based solely on $1.50 per ticket sold. Under each proposal, there is a credit against minimum annual rent equal to the amount of the ticket tax paid to the County.
4. According to the County’s financial adviser, Public Financial Management, Inc. (“PFM”), the total minimum rent payable over the initial 34 years of the lease is $112,109,840 for MSG, versus $194,522,894 for NEC. This was regarded by the Committee as providing a significant factor for selection of NEC over MSG.
5. Under the NEC proposal, the County retains control over any future development of the Coliseum site.

 In conclusion, the Committee viewed NEC’s willingness to accept, at Islanders/SMG lease expiration, immediate financial and managerial responsibility for the Coliseum at its sole expense, to pay rent to the County before and during construction, and to pay a measurably higher annual minimum rent with higher escalations as primary characteristics that contributed to distinguishing NEC’s commitment and confidence from the proposal submitted by MSG

Ratner Wins Coliseum Development RFP-Issue Now Turns To Bridgeport

Stunned, shocked, and speechless. I wrote the entry for Dolan winning two days ago, which may be cached & available for those who want that version. 

Fort Neverlose for now remains New York Islander Country.

If the NHL approves, the New York Islanders will play six home games at a renovated/downsized Nassau Coliseum. Bruce Ratner has to come up with an AHL team as promised in his bid which will shift the focus to Bridgeport/Wang's lease until 2021 in a facility he manages. Wang obviously can now continue to use the Coliseum for some Islander-related things like practices.

Dolan offered more money for most of the bidding period, a higher capacity facility, he had Master Developer of the HUB, Don Monti's endorsement, and one of the best real estate developer's on Long Island in former Wang/Lighthouse partner, Scott Rechler.

Plus Dolan owned virtually all the Long Island media.


Obviously the Nassau legislature, Mangano perhaps were not the biggest fans of Dolan's past, and present with bullying politicians/media/unions, and their tax exemption/operating permit demnds. Dolan historically has been a huge Suozzi supporter.

Perhaps Wang's right to reject any play detrimental to the Marriott, also played a part?

Whatever the truth is, it likely will not be reported. The Long Island Press on 8/13 reported Dolan's selectiver reporting standards regarding politcial contributions here.  


Newsday printed a story recently blasting a firm competing with the newspaper’s owners over the opposing business’ political spending without disclosing campaign donations made by the paper’s parent company—a new low.

“It is an error, and highly suspect,” Jaci Clement, executive director of Bethpage-based Fair Media Council, a local media watchdog group, said of the omission in the Aug. 7 article titled “Forest City’s political spending.”

“The whole product clearly screams who the owner is, and that it’s meant to be little more than a marketing vehicle for what it has to sell,” she said of Newsday‘s coverage since Cablevision took over. “And that may include seats at Nassau Coliseum.”

Unless Wang comments, who knows how he feels about it? AHL teams will have to pay the same prices NHL teams do when they visit.

Dolan reportedly went to no meetings, the latest Msg President, Hank Ratner (no relation). Bruce Ratner not only advised Nassau but was there for everything, maybe the personal factor won over some of the legislature?

Another former Msg President,  Dave Checkettes, who has a very contentious history with Dolan, is on team Ratner, and no doubt very happy.

There will be no Msg zone at the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum, it will remain the historical home of the New York Islanders along with all the extra's. 

Will be fun  now to see Dolan have to hire writers for Ratner's Coliseum teams, and provide television coverage? 

Bridgeport Announces Five Signings

Sound Tigers website: Announced today that five players have agreed to terms on minor league contracts. Forward Justin Johnson joins the organization on an American Hockey League (AHL) deal, while forward Ben Rosen, defensemen Mathieu Coderre-Gagnon and Sean Escobedo and goaltender Parker Milner have agreed to two-way (AHL/ECHL) contracts.

NYIFC Comments:  
Escobedo was in Islander prospect camp 2012. Rosen in 2013.

The prospect blog will be changed to reflect the signings, the Stockton Thunder page has already been added.