LONG ISLAND LAWMAKERS APPROVE $229M STADIUM RENOVATION

UNIONDALE, N.Y. — New York's Nassau County legislators have approved a $229 million plan by real estate developer Bruce Ratner, the mastermind of the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, to renovate the aging Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum on Long Island and its surrounding 77-acre property. Nassau County Executive Edward Mangano announced in August that he had selected a group headed by Ratner, executive chairman of Forest City Ratner Cos., to renovate the 41-year-old Nassau Coliseum and build an entertainment center around it. Ratner's plans include a 13,000 seat arena and an adjacent plaza with shopping, restaurants and amenities, according to Newsday. Its primary tenant, the National Hockey League's New York Islanders, announced last year that it will move from the coliseum to the new Barclays arena after the 2015 season. Construction is slated to begin soon after the Islanders lease ends.