Republican Round Table Sat Morning 4/4/09

I won't be able to write the entire thing right now as I'm sitting here in the blog box waiting for something (anything) to happen. Waiting for the Isles vs. Tampa. But I spent the afternoon listening on the sidelines to a group of Republican Assemblymen and representatives from various sports groups, Hofstra University, OTB and the Dept. of Tourism.

They all sat quietly while Michael Picker laid out the problems currently facing the Lighthouse Project team with regard to the time line for decisions on the DGEIS.

"The problem is the DGELS is only supposed to be reviewed for completeness and accuracy alone, not for conclusions."

It was a very interesting meeting, to say the least. But I did walk away with a few harsh realities.

1) Politics is the bane of Long Island's existence.
2) 30 people dictate the good of everybody else.

There was not one soul on the panel of speakers who had any objections to the Lighthouse mix-use development being built. It would have benefits that extend in numerous directions. Everyone was in agreement. But at the end of three and a half hours I asked, "Now... what are you going to do about it?"

And that, Ladies and Gentlemen, is the $3 billion question.

More to come on the (actually, seriously) fascinating meeting some time over the weekend.