Developers look to improve Elmont parks in bid for new Islanders arena

The Hempstead Town Board granted New York Arena Partners, the development group behind a proposed new arena for the National Hockey League’s New York Islanders, access to two nearby parks to study possible improvements there, according to Newsday. Under the agreement, the developers will inventory security cameras and lighting at the parks, while also surveying land, soil and groundwater at Elmont Road Park and Hendrickson Avenue Park. The developers will spend at least $1.5 million on the parks as they seek to push forward on construction this summer for a 19,000-seat arena that will anchor a proposed $1.2 billion mixed-use project on redeveloped land near the famous Belmont Park racetrack. When done, the development will have a 250-room hotel and 435,000 square feet of retail. The project is still going through an environmental review. Empire State Development expects that review to conclude by July. [Newsday]