A beacon of hope lay within a disappointing loss today.
If you haven't seen the insightful interview Howie Rose did with Charles Wang on the Islanders telecast tonight, I suggest you run over to the MSG Network and see if you can find the video. I thought Howie conducted the interview in a good way, and Mr. Wang, in my view, was both strong and disarming. It's an entertaining watch, and we'll have more about some of the conversation topics in future posts.
Within the interview, Charles Wang mentioned something that could bode very well to prompt approval of the Lighthouse Project. He mentioned that, next week, Tom Suozzi will be convening meetings on the Lighthouse in an attempt to get the County's part of the effort done concurrently while negotiations continue with the Town of Hempstead on the zoning.
I believe that it's now official. Charles Wang and Tom Suozzi are taking control of this process. Charles Wang has been far more vocal about the project now, and this is a clear strategy to keep the ball in the Town of Hempstead's court for the remainder of the process. Given the current conditions, momentum for the project has been building, and the Lighthouse group is rightly attempting to capitalize on it. Besides, the Town of Hempstead and Nassau County each have responsibilities in this project that do not necessarily overlap. There is not a hard and fast rule that things cannot be done concurrently. As I mentioned within the comments section, a large part of the lease document will look the same regardless of what the final scope of the project looks like. It makes sense to negotiate those pieces now because it will make the final negotiation that much quicker in the end.
As supporters, we need to stand up and make our voices heard, now more than ever. Our voices and opinions matter and can help ensure the prompt (yet thorough) approval of the Lighthouse plans. While ground-breaking this year is basically a fantasy, it will be just as positive to have all the pieces in place for ground-breaking next May.
I welcome your thoughts on the process and Charles Wang's more vocal role in the comments section. As always, don't forget to sign the petition and pass it on. I welcome your feedback at lettherebelighthouse@gmail.com.
I would have loved to be in the meeting where they said: OK, no more Mr. Nice Guy. Or more accurately, Mr. Taciturn. Time to take it to them!!
ReplyDeletedoes this mean that the county wants to have a lease worked out with wang/rechler before the toh approves the project? that would take away the only loophole in the current lease and put even more pressure on the toh to get this done quickly. sounds good to me.
ReplyDeleteBy my understanding, they're hammering out all the legalese and common pieces that will be in the lease regardless of the final scope. Terms will come after we know what this thing will actually look like.
ReplyDeleteI just hope we get this done..
ReplyDeletecurrently it is a big issue that weather the meeting result is positive or negative. i hope and wish. it's goes positive but every thing should be very clear and transparent.
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