NY Lawmakers Not Expected to Approve Belmont Bond Plan

New York state lawmakers are poised to end their 2022 session at the state Capitol June 2 without approving legislation for a state-issued, $450 million borrowing plan pushed by the New York Racing Association to fund a major overhaul of Belmont Park.

The construction project, which involves a new grandstand and track additions, envisions eventually making Belmont the sole New York City area Thoroughbred track operated by NYRA along with the redevelopment, eventually, of the valuable land at Aqueduct Racetrack in Queens into non-racing ventures.

The ambitious borrowing plan, which NYRA officials and supportive lawmakers said would not cost taxpayers any money, ran into a series of political, logistical, and other obstacles that kept the legislation from advancing at the end of the 2022 session in Albany, N.Y. 

The failed effort came in the aftermath of a controversial deal earlier this year for a project heavily financed by taxpayers for a new Buffalo Bills stadium, political upheaval surrounding unrelated redistricting matters that drew the lawmakers' attention, and a tight timetable for the end-of-session rush that not long ago would keep legislators in Albany until at least the end of June. Many lawmakers are also anxious to get out of Albany and return home to fully focus on primary and/or general election contests they face this year.

Sources say the next push will be to get the NYRA borrowing initiative contained in the 2023 state budget plan, which will be unveiled in January. A quiet effort, which then became not so quiet when word spread about the idea, had been launched by NYRA last spring during state budget talks; the proposal did not make it into the budget.

State lawmakers are looking to wrap up their 2022 session today or tonight—or in the early morning hours Friday if bill floor debates drag on. The week, like end-of-sessions in Albany over the decades, is a bill-passing frenzy, and all manner of legislation can slip in at the last moment. Just since Tuesday, 970 bills had passed either the Assembly or Senate as of early Thursday morning. But no one who spoke this week anticipated the NYRA borrowing bill coming to life for Thursday's final session.

If NYRA officials were disappointed in the bonding bill not moving from racing committees in either house, they weren't showing it. They say key groundwork was laid for the idea, and officials thanked Gov. Kathy Hochul and lawmakers for the "time and attention paid to this project" in recent weeks, as well as the sponsors of the legislation.

"Thanks to their hard work, a completely reimagined Belmont Park is closer than ever before,'' said Patrick McKenna, vice president of communications for NYRA.

"The construction of new and modernized racing facilities at Belmont Park is a transformational project that enjoys broad and enthusiastic support from members of the state legislature and local officials throughout Nassau County,'' he added.

State Sen. Joseph Addabbo, chairman of the Senate racing, wagering, and gaming committee, and a key backer of the borrowing bill, said June 1 through a spokesman that no major racing or gaming bills were expected to be taken up prior to the Legislature's end of session. 

Addabbo, a Queens Democrat, said Thursday afternoon the issue of bonding is one traditionally done in the state budget process during the spring. With the new arena and retail space on the grounds of the track, "You see why Belmont Racetrack needs the upgrade."

But, he added of the 2022 session winding down later tonight or sometime overnight, that "a little more effort needs to be done in terms of what the fiscal impact on the state will be and we're running out of time this year.

"I'm confident with a little hard work the legislature will do something in the next budget,'' he said of the Belmont plan.

Concerns may be traced to the complexity and sweeping nature of the measure, which would have long-term implications not just for Belmont but for the future of Aqueduct Racetrack. Sources say a major Belmont renovation would "unlock" Aqueduct for the state of New York for non-racing development. There also are unresolved questions about where three casinos in the New York City area—authorized in April's state budget to be fast-tracked this year—might be located. The operators of the current Video Lottery Terminal casino at Aqueduct, which has been highly successful over the years, are among those seeking one of the three remaining state licenses for rights to open a full-scale casino with slot machines (as opposed to VLTs) and table games.

The NYRA-pushed legislation would permit the not-for-profit racing corporation to have the state float up to $450 million in bonds on its behalf. The state path would be far simpler, and likely cheaper via lower interest rates than other options. Under the legislation's terms, NYRA would be responsible for all future interest expenses associated with any 30-year, state borrowing for the Belmont renovation.

NYRA wants to build a modern new grandstand/clubhouse to replace the current one that has not been renovated since 1968. It also wants to reconstruct Belmont's main track as well as its two turf courses, while installing a synthetic track as a fourth racing surface. Officials envision that synthetic surface being used during the winter depending on the future of Aqueduct.

NYRA earned a major victory earlier this session with approval of a measure to "hold harmless" video lottery terminal revenue sharing it now receives through the end of its current franchise in 2033.

Officials say some work of the Belmont plan—such as NYRA's plans to build tunnels at Belmont for use by trucks for future construction work and for fans to be allowed onto the 55-acre infield at the track—can still proceed without the borrowing bill being approved this week in Albany.

NYRA officials and lobbyists have spent weeks pitching and explaining their bond bill idea to lawmakers and key staffers in both houses. They say the plan will increase construction jobs and jump-start new economic development around Belmont while increasing the value of the track and property, which is a state-owned asset. 

The grounds include UBS Arena, which opened last year and is the home of the NHL's New York Islanders.