Residents, politicians and vendors who live and work on the Nassau-Queens border gave the proposed $1 billion Islanders arena at Belmont Park mixed reviews at the fourth public forum this week addressing the pros and cons of the project.
Those who spoke at Elmont Memorial Library on Thursday ranged in age from 73-year-old Chester Brown of Floral Park, who said the complex was “ill-planned and fraught with poorly thought out consequences,” to 9-year-old Michael Walker Jr. of Elmont, who followed his father and drew a near-standing ovation for his advice that planners should help Elmont residents succeed along with them.