Monthly Archives: May 2011
Passionate supporters of the New York Islanders, in Nassau County and other corners of the Country, are lining up to show support for the proposed deal for a new Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum. In order to promote the vote on Aug. 1, many fans have started social media campaigns on Twitter, Facebook and elsewhere.
Over the weekend, we heard from dozens of fans and referendum supporters with plans to create their own campaigns over the next few weeks. You’re welcome to email me at cbotta@islanderspointblank.com if you want to be included in our next post. Here are just some of the initiatives that Point Blank was emailed about that you may want to consider showing your support for. As you will see, in some extraordinary cases, the dedication of fans to the Islanders is boundless.
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Alex Tessler, Port Jefferson and Carey Haber, Plainview
Hey Chris. My name’s Alex Tessler. I’m the one who’s running and who started the biggest fan page currently on Facebook. I’m running it as joint operation between myself and a fellow IslanderMania poster, Carey Haber. I run the Facebook page, he runs the Twitter account.
“Vote YES on a new arena for the New York Islanders on August 1st” and @VoteYesNYIArena on Twitter
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Vote-YES-on-a-new-arena-for-the-New-York-Islanders-on-August-1st/191239960922222
and
http://twitter.com/#!/VoteYESNYIArena
We are a collective group of Islander fans and proponents of the referendum from all locations, not just Nassau County. We are trying to get the word out for Nassau County residents to vote in support of the Coliseum-plan referendum on August 1st. We want this team to stay on Long Island and we are going to do it by spreading the truths as to why a new arena would be the best development for Nassau County, and Long Island as a whole.
Thanks for all you do, Chris. I’ve already dubbed this “The Islander Spring.”
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Rob Blount
Hi Chris. My name is Rob Blount. I have been helping others to lead a social media campaign. I would like to clarify that neither one of these pages are mine, but both deserve the attention and I wanted to put in a good word for them. The twitter account that one person started is called @VoteYESNYIArena.
My twitter name is @robblount and I will be tweeting constantly about this as I always do for the Islanders. Thank you for the attention you are giving the social media and for doing all you do.
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Ruud van der Borgh – Echt, The Netherlands
Hi Chris. After reading your message on Point Blank I started working on a Facebook page immediately for fans in Holland!
I’m also working on a page at the social media network called Hyves (I don’t know if people in the US know what that is 
). As soon as I finish the Hyves page, I will send you a link as well! Below is the info you asked for! I hope you appreciate us Dutch fans!
Name of the page (Facebook): Dutch NY Islanders Fans Vote For New Isles Arena
Link: http://www.facebook.com/?ref=logo#!/pages/Dutch-NY-Islanders-Fans-Vote-For-New-Isles-Arena/148031891934304
I want to represent all the Islander fans in the Netherlands. I know, this maybe not of any use! But I don’t care, I just want to show our support as well. We stay up at night (2 till 5 in the morning) to watch Islanders games! We don’t get the chance to see them play in real life, as much as the Long Islanders do, but hey should be proud to have such a team! And that’s why the people need to vote! In Nassau County on August 1st for real, but all over the world just to make the people see we care! After all, we are all Islanders!
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Michael Leboff, Rockville Centre
CB: My name is Michael Leboff. We actually met on a train home from MSG a few years ago. I saw your post on IPB about a social media revolution concerning Ed Mangano’s plan for the coliseum. While I have not started any Social Media pages for this cause, I am running for Mayor of Rockville Centre in June.
I have been in love with the Islanders for pretty much my whole life, so my campaign staff and I are making sure we make our stance on the matter clear, we support the County Executive and we love our Islanders. Since I was a sophomore in high school I have attended about 150 Islander home games, despite not having season tickets. My friends and I spent many of our high school nights inside that old barn, and we would all be crushed to have those memories tainted by the disappearance of our favorite team.
I know that the Mayor of Rockville Centre will not really have a say on the matter, but my voice will be heard. August 1st has become the most important day of my life, and I will do everything in my power to make sure this legislation passes.
Here are the links to my social media pages:
http://www.facebook.com/Leboff4Mayor
http://twitter.com/#!/leboff2011
P.S. – We’re all Islanders.
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Joe Bondi, Mahopac, NY (Putnam County)
Knight of Cups
http://knightofcups-bondi.blogspot.com/
I am a long time Islander fan, formerly of ESPN, who was inspired by Dee Karl and yourself to start a blog of my own. The Islanders are a passion of mine and I want to do what I can to show pride in my colors. Thanks again for all you do Chris.
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Dennis P. of Bellport, NY
http://twitter.com/#!/DenP77
I represent the people of Suffolk County who will have no say in saving our Isles from moving. I want all the Islanders fans of Suffolk County to flood their state officials ( Assemblymen, Senators and even the Governor) offices with letters and phone calls encouraging the state to get involved in anyway they can. Let’s get the weight of Albany behind this arena. The state has already watched two NFL teams leave town. They don’t need to lose another professional sports team.
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Doug Colquhoun, Dix Hills
“Vote “Yes” on the referendum for a new Islanders arena!”
http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=149256995143122
The ultimate goal is to keep the Islanders on Long Island. The goal of this event is to remind people to vote “Yes” and to get the word out about this referendum. Otherwise, Long Island will be without not just a hockey team, but a major league sports team of any kind.
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John Kingston, Carle Place
Dear Chris: I think it’s good that you’re aggregating social media contact sites for the August 1 vote. But this vote is not going to prevail in Islander fans’ favor if everybody thinks victory will be had by just sitting down at their computer screen, and I think that point needs to be made.
Yes, social media will be very important. But there’s got to be some work involved too. I hope that there is some sort of joint get-out-the-vote plan administered by the team and the Republicans, since it is Republican officials who have put themselves on the line for this. I hope the team and the Republicans will try to tap into the fans’ enthusiasm and put it to good use.
What I am doing is an old Republican campaign strategy called Do Me a Favor cards. It’s a horizontal card that opens up, and inside (when it was used by the GOP) it would say something like “My friend Steve Jones is running for County Court Judge. He’s a good guy, and please vote for him.” That would be preprinted and there would be a place there for a salutation and a signature. The political activist who agreed to do these would be expected to do the signatures and the addresses, and mail them to friends and acquaintances.
I personally am determined to do at least 100 of these. I’m targeting people who I’m fairly certain would vote YES. For example, the guy who drives me to the airport on business trips, who hated the Lighthouse, who talks about taxes all the time…I don’t think he’s getting one! I’ve also offered, in a couple of posts on Islandermania, to send pre-printed cards to anybody who sends me a note at getthevoteout0801@yahoo.com. (I’ve got two takers so far). And then let’s hope they’d get 100 people also.
I haven’t made up the cards yet, but I’ve drafted the text for it. It’s too early to send them out anyway. I figure right after July 4 weekend will be fine.
My draft text for the note is as follows:
I am asking you to support a brighter Long Island future and cast a vote Monday, August 1 in support of the bond issue for the redevelopment of the Nassau Coliseum site.
To deal with one worry right off the bat: revenues from the project itself, not the taxpayers, will pay off the bonds over many years, a classic “project finance” type of development.
But more immediately, this project will do several things. It will keep the Islanders here, where they belong. It will avoid us having to demolish the decrepit Coliseum with no replacement and have another key piece of Long Island real estate sit empty or turn into one more strip mall. It will provide jobs, both short-term to develop the site and long-term to operate it. It will provide Long Island much-needed convention and exhibition space, something tourist officials will tell you long has been missing here.
But most important, it signals a different future for an otherwise fading Long Island where it’s long been said “you can’t get anything done,” where so many young people are looking for the exits, and where companies no longer even consider when they’re looking to grow. It says we’re ready to embrace the future and show the rest of the New York area that you can’t count us out. A “yes” vote does that, and I am asking you to do me a favor and say “aye” on August 1.
Comments on the arena issue and these fan social media initiatives are welcomed.
As we wait through the Mangano/NIFA-fight, time to talk hockey again. Scott Cullen has written a fair, balanced, intelligent, thorough feature on the Islanders called “Off-Season Game Plan” for TSN.ca. I had to have Scott on to discuss his latest and greatest edition. Your NYI OSGP, in 150 words or less, is welcomed in Comments.
In response to several requests for re-tweets and links, Point Blank will provide plugs for anyone that has opened a Twitter account, Facebook group or other social media initiative spreading their gospel about the Aug. 1 vote on the new Coliseum. If you are leading the charge, please send the following in one email to cb@islanderspointblank.com
1. Your name and town (last initial is good enough)
2. The name of your Facebook page, Twitter, blog etc.
3. A link
4. One or two sentences detailing your cause, goal and any statement you want to make – like whom you are representing
Please send by Monday at noon. I’ll compile into one directory that will lead the site. Thank you.
10:10 am: The Islanders have locked up Michael Grabner long-term. The Calder Trophy finalist is under contract for the next five years. As reported by Pierre Lebrun, the deal has a $3 million annual salary cap, but with a fascinating breakdown: $1 million this upcoming season, $2 million in year 2, $3 million in year 3, $4 million in year 4 and $5 million in the last year, 2015-16, when the Islanders hope to be in their new arena.
From my ESPN piece on Tuesday:
Wang can help his cause by improving his hockey club. To gain momentum from his loudest supporters, Wang can finalize a long-term contract with restricted free agent Michael Grabner, the Calder Trophy finalist who scored 34 goals this season and won over fans with his daffy daily life observations on Twitter.
And that’s exactly what they did. Grabner announced the news on his Twitter page. Well-done and smartly-timed.
Comments.
Chris Botta at ESPN New York
1:50 pm, Village of Rockville Centre, Town of Hempstead, Nassau County: No doubt there is fine print in our Constitution outlawing the presence of hockey players from Austria, Switzerland, Canada and even Massachusetts near election booths in Nassau County, but surely the Islanders can get creative.
No one will mind if the Islanders do not focus on any other charitable or community appearances over the next 80 days. Until Aug. 1, there is no bigger community initiative than keeping the Islanders in Nassau County.
So line up those party buses in every town on Islanders Election Day Monday. Make it easy (and fun!) for every Nassau resident who cares about the team or the property to have a ride to the polls. Make sure Grabs, Streiter, JT, Moulson and every other current player that the supporters care about is in the Country. Line up the illustrious alumni – not just the dynasty but some of the popular ’93 guys, to reach that demographic – whether they live in New York or not, whether they enjoy a loving relationship with current management or not. Make amends. There is too much at stake. There is not a single former Islander on the planet who wants to see the team move. They’ll do anything to help. All you have to do is ask.
Of course, the battle for a new Coliseum is not just about the Islanders. If Edward Mangano can ever get his act together – “if it can be done, it will be done,” the County Exec embarrassed himself by telling Islanders-friendly Newsday when pushed for more concrete financial details – the burden is on him to articulate the true effect on taxes. A new Coliseum would host 41 regular season Islanders games plus playoffs, so naturally the project leaders will want to explain how this could be your last chance in Nassau to see Bon Jovi, Jay Z, Lady Gaga, the E Street Band, Metallica and all the musical artists you care about. Since he doesn’t get asked tough questions at faux press conferences, Charles Wang might want to explain how a team that is going to lose another $80 million or so over the next four years is ever going to be in shape to meet their obligation with the bond.
But the Islanders need to control what they can control. And they better not waste a single day between now and Aug. 1 taking anything or anyone for granted. If it takes a couple million dollars to make sure an Islanders famous face, the logo, the word YES and Aug. 1 can be seen prominently on every corner in every village for two months, you do it.
If it means lining up interviews between management and players with every small newspaper and every AOL Patch micro-site in Nassau, you do it.
If it means forming a committee of Islanders and Coliseum supporters to get out the vote – non-Nassau residents can be involved, as can men, women and children of all ages – you do it.
After all the cake Wang has lost on the Islanders and the Lighthouse, what’s a few million bucks when you’re talking about a $400 million prize?
As I wrote at ESPN on Wednesday, if the vote happens on Aug. 1, the Islanders and Mangano should be heavy favorites. The press conference/rally was barely over, and my story was published, when I already had regrets that I didn’t put if in italics. The party wasn’t even broken up when the push-back began in a big way.
It would have been one thing for the Nassau Interim Finance Committee to privately sulk about Mangano’s decision to not communicate with them about his little $400 million idea, but no. NIFA went big. By noon on Wednesday, the New York State agency that controls Nassau’s purse was returning phone calls from every writer and blogger. And, in some cases, NIFA didn’t even wait for the call. They were pro-active in getting their message across. That tells you everything you need to know about how pissed they were.
By now you know the gist of NIFA’s statement: “We’re deeply concerned about the county executive’s proposal and its fiscal implications for the county.” But did you seee this beauty from George Marlin of NIFA to Long Island Business News? “It’s an absolute waste of money,” Marlin said of the Wangano Plan.
So, as we learned officially in record time, even if the vote actually happens on Aug. 1, there’s going to be opposition. Again, this is still the Islanders’ title to lose. They have the deck stacked in their favor. The Aug. 1 date, a Monday during our cherished Long Island summer, was a stroke of evil genius. The Islanders have the people – including some stars of past and future – and the resources (cash and staff). The opposition does not. This is not the battle over the Lighthouse Project, easy pickins for the NIMBY crowd. They also do not want to rely on Mangano, a good man and businessman, but a politician incapable of taking over a room and making his point like…well, even Tom Suozzi. And where did that get the Lighthouse?
Above all else, the Islanders have fanatics. Ten of thousands of fans. (A tip: with a glance at the demographics of this blog, I would strongly recommend the Islanders show some love to the 18-24 crowd. You young men and women can give up a day at the beach, or work, right?)
The Islanders have fans eager to get to the polls on the First Monday in August and take a stand for their team. A little inspiration and gratitude from the team would put them over the top.
Islanders fans have been through a lot, and many have you have given a lot of your time and income to your favorite hockey club. But to those of you who care – and heck, if you’re reading this crappy blog in mid-May you obviously care – this is not the time to sit back and wait for the next setback. If you’re okay with the $400 million bond so Wang and your team can have a new building, t’s not the time to think it’s going to come down to another round of Town Halls or, ugh, zoning hearings.
Ask not what your Country can do for you, but what you can do for your Country.
Comments, please.
Chris Botta at NHL Home Ice
CB Islanders column at ESPN
The editors of ESPN New York invited me today to write a column on the arena news. Please read and react there. This is an opportunity for Islanders fans to raise their voices on a major all-sports site, and maybe even show editors that there’s a large audience for hockey coverage out there. Please post comments at ESPN. Thank you…CB
10:15 pm: After August 1, no one will ever be able to say Charles Wang didn’t try everything he could to keep the New York Islanders in Nassau County.
After August 1, no one will ever be able to say Nassau County Executive Edward Mangano didn’t try to save the Islanders.
And yes, after August 1, no one will ever be able to say Town of Hempstead Supervisor Kate Murray was a primary culprit in the Islanders leaving Uniondale.
Point Blank has confirmed that Aug. 1 is the scheduled date for the referendum on a bond for a planned sports and entertainment destination center on the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum property. The cost is expected to be $400 million. Nassau County residents will vote yay or nay.
In large part, Taking A Stand is what Wednesday’s press conference is all about. Since the vote is being taken to the people, there won’t be blood on the hands of Wang, Mangano and Murray. Wang has nothing to lose sleep over and will have no guilt; he has been at this – at a loss of tens of millions of dollars on the hockey team, plus his Lighthouse investment – for eleven years. Mangano is doing what he can despite a crippling deficit and having to answer to New York State for his county’s finances. Murray is along for the ride because she cannot lose either way. She stopped the Lighthouse from happening, making her a hero to many. She has said for years that she is all for a new building and little else. If the vote does not pass, Murray will be able to say she did what she could while standing by the Islanders and the County.
There are plenty of reasons for optimism. This is the closest the Islanders have come to getting a new arena…by far. In this economy and after all this time, this can easily be sold in the court of public opinion as the most sensible plan…by far. Although Wang, Murray and Tom Suozzi joined hands in a forced and premature show of unity a few years ago, this is the best illustration that the leaders are trying to work together to save the Islanders and develop the Coliseum site…by far.
Leading up to August 1, there will be strong support and strong opposition. The Democratic minority legislature has already issued a statement of criticism, correctly pointing out that they had a deal with Wang – known as the Lighthouse Project – in which the development would be spectacular and Wang was going to pay for it himself. Mangano’s plan will cost the County. Wang’s Lighthouse would not have. After this, you cannot blame Wang for feeling like he’s done if the vote does not pass.
The challenge, if the Islanders, County and Town choose to accept it, is to get all sides involved and be transparent. Local union leaders – public unions, like the ones that strongly supported the Lighthouse Project at every hearing, as opposed to private unions – as of late Tuesday night had not been invited by Mangano to participate in the press conference. Some professional journalists Tuesday were urged to tweet about the “good news,” leading many fans and residents to believe a new Coliseum was a done deal. It is far from it, which is why Wednesday is a rally (fans are invited, Grabs and some of the boys will be there) as much as a press conference. To get the yays they want, it would be a tragic error if the leaders start to BS anyone.
The media advisory released by the County early Tuesday was honest. It said the event, first reported via Twitter by the Long Island blogger B.D. Gallof, is an “announcement” of a “plan.” That’s news – maybe even hopeful news, but far from good news. Too much work is ahead, too much sales and marketing to counter the political and community activism. The vote has to pass, or it will lead - for the first time, genuinely – to the possibility of the Islanders not just leaving Nassau, but quite possibly leaving New York.
The trio will announce its deal Wednesday. But what Wang, Mangano and Murray really are doing is announcing that they have done their part and will not and can not do anything else. Do not expect any alternatives to be shared if the vote fails.
It’s up to the people now.
I believe the vote will pass, that this is the Islanders’ and the County’s game to lose. Done the right way, Aug. 1 will bring good news to Islanders Country and the residents that have been waiting for the Coliseum property to be developed for a long, long time.
Comments welcomed.
