BRIAN SCAVO VS CYBER BULLIES

BRIAN SCAVO VS CYBER BULLIES
Brian Scavo is making laws that help people!

Saturday, August 30, 2014

Albany Holds Out 'Casino Hopes, good luck brian scavo

Albany Holds Out 'Casino Hopes'DONATE HERE

Even though the city of Albany is out of the competition to land a casino, the Common Council may soon get to vote on supporting one.


Credit WAMC composite photo by Dave Lucas
You may have thought Albany had washed its hands of the casino issue early in the summer when the E23 plan crumbled and developer David Flaum set sail for Rensselaer. Mayor Kathy Sheehan sent a short letter to Common Council members, asking they not endorse any of the Capital Region casino projects prior to the state's June 30 application deadline. There is one casino license available for the Capital Region.
At the time, none of the local proposals were inside the city or county, so  Albany was not in line for any monetary benefits casinos would pay host communities. That has changed.
The forces behind a Hard Rock Hotel & Casino planned for the city of Rensselaer, undoubtedly mindful of the fact Albany is going through a financial crisis, stepped up to the plate, offering Albany $1 million a year for the next 10 years in exchange for Albany's support for the $280 million riverfront development. Neighboring community support is considered an important part of the gaming commission’s siting process.
According to published reports, once June 30 passed, Albany struck an agreement with the partnerships in Rensselaer and East Greenbush to jointly pay for a consultant Albany would select to analyze the pros and cons of each plan with regard to the capital city.
The reports say the offer includes jobs training programs. The Times Union says Mayor Sheehan has told lawmakers to expect written proposals from both the Rensselaer and East Greenbush teams within days.
"I found out about the million dollars when I read the paper this morning."  Tenth ward Common Council member Leah Golby and her colleagues would have to approve any arrangement.
Rensselaer Mayor Dan Dwyer says he's glad to give the city across the river a boost.  "Albany is a little tight on cash, so we figure a million dollars would help them in the economic condition they're in. But there's more to it than just a million dollalrs. There's job creation, and we're gonna help their hotels over there, because overflow - when the people call into the Hard Rock for a hotel room, it's gonna be upscale and some people aren't gonna be able to afford that price, so what we're gonna do is recommend hotels in Albany."
Golby says Wednesday night, the council talked about casinos for the first time in weeks.  "We were just discussing that we would be hearing from the mayor on what she was seeking support what she thought would be appropriate for the city to seek support from. I think the council as a whole is waiting to see what the mayor brings to us, and then there is of course, the Rensselaer site has been courting the city very proactively."  

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Former county legislator Brian Scavo issued a statement saying he believes Hard Rock casino deal maker Flaum is acting in desperation by offering Albany a million dollars. Quoting Scavo: "Sheehan and” Common Council president Carolyn “McLauglin should have had more concern for the taxpayers of Albany when the city of Albany had LOST two chances for two casino deals , which would have meant tax relief for the city of Albany."

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Mayor Sheehan's office did not immediately respond to a call for comment.   Flaum's offer dangles the prospect of jobs training programs, but some critics of casino development say the projects rarely results in jobs for people who seem to need them most. The question of whether casinos spur economic development or merely further depress challenged areas has been debated across upstate New York and in neighboring Massachusetts in recent months.
Again, Leah Golby: "The potential positive impact of jobs is very real and hopeful, but there could also be negative impacts of increased crime and traffic."
Golby says she'll wait and see if East Greenbush and its Churchill Downs-Saratoga Racino project comes up with a million-dollar offer of its own. The state has yet to select a casino site from the four applicants, which also include Schenectady and Schoharie County at Howe Caverns. A Montgomery County proposal was disqualified.

Friday, August 29, 2014

TALE OF TWO CASINO'S brian scavo

A Tale Of Two Casinos And A CityDONATE HERE


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As established casinos across the Northeast close their doors or administer cost-cutting measures, New York is just getting into the game.  And although it won’t host a casino if its own, Albany has become a key player.


Credit WAMC composite image by Dave Lucas
The mantra has been "jobs and the economy," and New York's capital is crossing its fingers, hoping for a windfall should a casino go up in nearby Rensselaer County.
Long before final word from the gaming commission, the casino siting process has local governments and residents taking positions and forming alliances to woo or shoo casino developers.
Albany's own casino project for Exit 23 got yanked by developer David Flaum, attracted to an apparently easier-to-implement Hard Rock Hotel & Casino project across the Hudson River in the city of Rensselaer.
This week, Albany Mayor Kathy Sheehan and Saratoga Casino and Raceway and Churchill Downs Incorporated, operators of the proposed $300 million Capital View Casino And Resort in East Greenbush, announced a non-exclusive deal that would send $11 million over 10 years into city coffers. The news came on the heels of Albany and Hard Rock failing to negotiate an exclusive agreement.

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Albany County legislator Brian Scavo isn't thrilled about how the City of Albany would use any funds reaped from a casino agreement, which are going to the Capitalize Albany Corporation.   "The proposed 1 million dollars a year for ten years should be earmarked for property tax relief for the people of Albany. Not economic development."

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But Albany residents have been promised they could get up to 25 percent of the casino jobs that will be created in East Greenbush.  Over in Troy, Mayor Lou Rosamilia managed to stay above the squabbling over casino dollars.   "The only thing that we have done in the city of Troy, the city council passed legislation to support a casino if it would be located in the city of Rensselaer or in East Greenbush, and I signed on to that.  I talked to Dan, the mayor of Rensselaer. There has never been any mention of any side deals or any money exchanged between the city of Troy and the city of Rensselaer."
But Saratoga Casino & Raceway has sweetened the pot: spokesperson Rita Cox is Senior Vice President of Marketing:   "A partnership agreement with Troy Savings Bank Music Hall - a lot of cross-marketing, benefits for our guests, as well as helping promote the facility and sponsorship funds each year."
Rensselaer Mayor Dan Dwyer told the Albany Business Review the developers of the Hard Rock are still in a strong position to win a state gambling license even without support from the City of Albany.
Resident group Save East Greenbush believes the deal struck between the developers of Capital View Casino and the City of Albany indicates a lack of regard for the citizens and businesses in their town. The group has fought tooth and nail against the proposal from the very start, questioning the estimates of jobs and revenue presented by the developer and the agreement with Albany, which the group feels eliminates the possibility of visitors patronizing any local businesses in East Greenbush.
But that's merely a "possibility." At a mayor's conference at Albany Law School back in February, Sheehan, making a case for downtown development over gaming, had this to say about casinos possibly benefiting local businesses:    "You know you go to the casino in Niagara Falls, people drive in, go to the casino, they stay there, eat there, drink there and leave."
Besides the City of Albany, Capital View Casino & Resort has inked agreements with the Palace Theater, Times Union Center, Park Playhouse, Albany Symphony and the Albany Institute of History & Art.
Those accords depend on a casino actually coming to the area. The decision will be made by the state's Gaming Commission, which can award one Capital Region license and two Hudson Valley/Catskills licenses. Again, Rita Cox:   "The presentations will be in front of the siting board on September 8th. And then the public will have an opportunity to weigh in on September 22nd. That's when they'll be having public hearings."
If a Capital Region casino is approved, it would come at a time, according to the New York Times, when the industry finds itself at a crossroads: "analysts, economists and casino operators warn that the industry is already suffering the effects of fierce competition, if not saturation."

ALBANY NEW CASINO DEAL SCREWS THE TAX PAYERS

PRESS RELEASE

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Albany ,New York, Brian Scavo said today The New East Green Bush casino endorsement deal negotiated by Kathy Sheehan , the proposed 1 million dollars a year for 10 years should be earmarked for property tax tax relief for the people of Albany , not economic development,.

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Brian Scavo also said "I would like to point out that government can't make economic development only private business's and corporation's can make economic development growth, the tax payers of the city of Albany are long over due for tax relief , this money should not go to the general fund and there no guarantee that the casino will be awarded to East Green Bush.
Scavo also said " Kathy Sheehan has lost two casino deals and blew the 1 million dollar deal with the hard rock casino and any way you look at it the current Albany mayoral administration has no real business experience,
sadly at the expense of the Albany tax payers .

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Tuesday, August 19, 2014

DYSFUNCTIONAL ALBANY NY COMMON COUNCIL BLOWS THE CASINO DEAL AGAIN

Capital Region News
4:57 PM
THU AUGUST 14, 2014

Albany Holds Out 'Casino Hopes' DONATE HERE

Even though the city of Albany is out of the competition to land a casino, the Common Council may soon get to vote on supporting one.




Credit WAMC composite photo by Dave Lucas
You may have thought Albany had washed its hands of the casino issue early in the summer when the E23 plan crumbled and developer David Flaum set sail for Rensselaer. Mayor Kathy Sheehan sent a short letter to Common Council members, asking they not endorse any of the Capital Region casino projects prior to the state's June 30 application deadline. There is one casino license available for the Capital Region. DONATE HERE
At the time, none of the local proposals were inside the city or county, so  Albany was not in line for any monetary benefits casinos would pay host communities. That has changed.
The forces behind a Hard Rock Hotel & Casino planned for the city of Rensselaer, undoubtedly mindful of the fact Albany is going through a financial crisis, stepped up to the plate, offering Albany $1 million a year for the next 10 years in exchange for Albany's support for the $280 million riverfront development. Neighboring community support is considered an important part of the gaming commission’s siting process.
According to published reports, once June 30 passed, Albany struck an agreement with the partnerships in Rensselaer and East Greenbush to jointly pay for a consultant Albany would select to analyze the pros and cons of each plan with regard to the capital city.
The reports say the offer includes jobs training programs. The Times Union says Mayor Sheehan has told lawmakers to expect written proposals from both the Rensselaer and East Greenbush teams within days.
"I found out about the million dollars when I read the paper this morning."  Tenth ward Common Council member Leah Golby DONATE HERE and her colleagues would have to approve any arrangement.
Rensselaer Mayor Dan Dwyer says he's glad to give the city across the river a boost.  "Albany is a little tight on cash, so we figure a million dollars would help them in the economic condition they're in. But there's more to it than just a million dollalrs. There's job creation, and we're gonna help their hotels over there, because overflow - when the people call into the Hard Rock for a hotel room, it's gonna be upscale and some people aren't gonna be able to afford that price, so what we're gonna do is recommend hotels in Albany."
Golby says Wednesday night, the council talked about casinos for the first time in weeks.  "We were just discussing that we would be hearing from the mayor on what she was seeking support what she thought would be appropriate for the city to seek support from. I think the council as a whole is waiting to see what the mayor brings to us, and then there is of course, the Rensselaer site has been courting the city very proactively." DONATE HERE
Former county legislator Brian Scavo issued a statement saying he believes Hard Rock casino deal maker Flaum is acting in desperation by offering Albany a million dollars. Quoting Scavo:  DONATE HERE"Sheehan and” Common Council president Carolyn “McLauglin should have had more concern for the taxpayers of Albany when the city of Albany had LOST two chances for two casino deals , which would have meant tax relief for the city of Albany." 
DONATE HERE
Mayor Sheehan's office did not immediately respond to a call for comment.   Flaum's offer dangles the prospect of jobs training programs, but some critics of casino development say the projects rarely results in jobs for people who seem to need them most. The question of whether casinos spur economic development or merely further depress challenged areas has been debated across upstate New York and in neighboring Massachusetts in recent months.
Again, Leah Golby: "The potential positive impact of jobs is very real and hopeful, but there could also be negative impacts of increased crime and traffic."
Golby says she'll wait and see if East Greenbush and its Churchill Downs-Saratoga Racino project comes up with a million-dollar offer of its own. The state has yet to select a casino site from the four applicants, which also include Schenectady and Schoharie County at Howe Caverns. A Montgomery County proposal was disqualified. DONATE HERE