As the Barclays nears its September 28th opening, there have been a lot of photos posted around the internet of the different parts of the building. One of the most interesting is this picture; what might be our first look at the ice sheet inside the arena, via Instagram user hulkingspider (via LHH).
This picture is helpfully taken of what appears to be the side of the arena that that has garnered attention for the Barclays’ ‘horseshoe’ seating arrangement for hockey. The views of the near net from one end zone of upper deck seating aren’t viable and it looks like it will be blocked off by a curtain. I’m guessing the curtain isn’t for the Jay-Z concert or anything non-hockey related, but I’m not certain. Here’s a side view of the curtain from @kicksavetwenty: To read more of this story, click here
Per Newsday, Arthur Breslin has pulled out of the four-horse RFQ race.
“It was just impossible for me to get together an application that would be worthy in the period of time they provided,” Breslin said Thursday… “You have to be able to do things in due course and good time, and to do it correctly instead of just rushing it because you had a deadline that was too short to begin with as far as I was concerned,” Breslin said. “I had a plan in my head that I had to get onto paper . . . All of that needs time and you can’t do that overnight.”
But Mangano spokesman Brian Nevin noted that the other developers had completed their presentations on time.
And a very interesting line towards the end:
[Breslin] said that if he is approached by the winning developer, he would consider a future role in the site.
Blumenfeld Development Group has declined a request for comment on their RFQ until the County has made a decision.
EXCLUSIVE — Renaissance Downtowns CEO Donald Monti: “If Charles wants to stay here, I think we can help make it happen.”
Kevin Schultz , Islanders Point Blank:
In a phone conversation on Wednesday afternoon, Renaissance Downtowns CEO Donald Monti firmly stated that his intention in developing the Nassau County Hub property — the 77 acre property the Coliseum sits on — is to help retain the New York Islanders and establish an economic and technological center for the County. Monti is one of four Long Island developers who have submitted a Request for Qualifications to Nassau County, in the hopes of being selected to develop the Coliseum Hub.
“To be honest, there really is no other team but us,” Monti said regarding his support for keeping the Islanders on the Hub property. “I’m not saying this for self-serving reasons, I’m saying it because there’s nobody that cares about the Islanders staying that’s responded. When they say so publicly then they mean so even more privately.”
Monti also stressed the need to act now, in an effort to turn around the decades of stagnation that has hindered both the County Hub property, the Coliseum and the team.
“I go back to the four successive years that they won the Cup and at that time I was a season ticket holder. To me it would be an absolute shame for any area to lose a professional franchise. What’s going to keep the Islanders here is a positive momentum and we have to make sure that’s the message that resonates constantly. I think I’m the only respondent that’s committed to do that.”
A Look at the Four Developers Who Responded to Mangano’s RFQ
Kevin Schultz , Islanders Point Blank:
Thanks to Newsday’s Randi Marshall, we now have the names of four developers who have submitted RFQs to the County for development of the Coliseum property (and you should really follow her on Twitter if you want to keep up with this sort of news). I’m going to preface all this with the following; that this doesn’t mean things are any closer to getting a new Coliseum built. Not only that, but the developers have not been asked even to submit plans yet. It’s essentially a show of hands for who wants to kick tires on this political football that’s on its last bit of air. Another key point here is that this process hasn’t involved the Islanders yet, another important step before we really have an idea of how this impacts the team. Nonetheless, here are the details on the four developers who submitted RFQs to the County: To read more of this story, click here
Bruce Ratner “Trying Like Hell” to Get the Islanders to Brooklyn
Kevin Schultz , Islanders Point Blank:
I’ll have more on Nassau’s RFQ tomorrow but for now let’s check in with the Daily News who had Barclays Center’s Bruce Ratner boasting about his new arena. He’s got reason to do it, too. The BC looks like it will be a very serious challenger to MSG and the Prudential Center, currently the area’s newest and best places to catch a concert. Ratner also briefly touched on the Islanders and the possibility of them playing in Brooklyn:
“And I am trying like hell to get the Islanders to make Barclays Center their new hockey home,” says Ratner, sweeping his hand across the big arena where workers in cherry-picker buckets installed acoustic panels on the domed ceiling as others installed black seats. “They will play a pre-season game here against the Devils.”
