Las Vegas Sands eyes Nassau for new casino as applications open for downstate NY

Nassau County could become the home of a full-service casino and resort.The New York Gaming Facility Location Board voted on Tuesday to open up the application process for three downstate casinos.Voters approved a constitutional amendment in 2013 to allow the state to grant full-gaming licenses for up to seven private casinos statewide.The first four were only allowed upstate, but now there's a chance for them to be built across the downstate region in Yonkers, Brooklyn, Queens, Manhattan and Long Island.Las Vegas Sands, a Nevada-based casino and resort company, has been eyeing possible locations to open a casino on the Island. There have been talks about establishing one at the Nassau Hub.Some who live or work in the area say they are all for it."It definitely impacts the area in home values. I also think it could bring a lot of revenue to some of the businesses,” says Katie Cobb, of Islip.However, Uniondale mother Diana Blanco says she thinks a casino would be detrimental to the local families."I am looking more for my kids and more of what it would do to our community -- not just moneywise," she says.Another possible location mentioned was in the UBS Arena at Belmont Park.Las Vegas Sands said in a statement to News 12, "We are excited for the opportunity to present an extremely competitive and compelling proposal. These new licenses represent the potential to generate thousands of good paying jobs and build an exciting new industry for the region's economy."The state Gaming Facility Location Board will oversee all incoming license proposals.The Gaming Commission will have the final say where the three downstate casinos will go.