The group is also involved in the Belmont Park Arena's development with the New York Islanders.
(meta data) TITLE: Oak View Group CEO: Nothing has changed with Belmont plan | Newsday (meta data) AUTHOR: Jim Baumbach (meta data) PUBLISHED DATETIME: 2018-10-10T18:06:41-05:00 Today's paper Get breaking news alerts from Newsday Turn on notifications? Not now Desktop notifications are on Not Enabled You might be using private browsing or have notifications blocked. Please enable notifications or using normal browsing mode. Log in Long Island Feed Me TODAY'S PAPER 72° Good Evening Long Island Data and maps LI Life High school Horse Racing Motor Racing Reality TV Nassau Coliseum Feed Me Things to Do Food and Drink Top 100 Restaurants Fashion and Shopping Home and Garden LI Getaways Labor Day Nation and World State and Region Matt Davies Letters to the editor Submit your letter Real Estate Mutual funds Real Estate Special Sections 72° Good Evening # Oak View Group CEO: Nothing has changed with Belmont plan Company bought MSG's stake, but that doesn't alter plans for a new Islanders' arena By Jim Baumbach jim.baumbach@newsday.com Updated October 10, 2018 6:06 PM Oak View Group chief executive officer Tim Leiweke said Wednesday that "nothing has really changed" to the group behind the Islanders' Belmont arena development plans following Madison Square Garden's sale of its stake in the company. Oak View Group, which builds, manages and books shows to dozens of arenas nationwide, is partnering with the owners of the Islanders and Mets on a $1 billion sports and entertainment development at Belmont Racetrack. "This was always an an OVG project," Leiweke said, "and always something that I was personally going to drive with my relationship with [Islanders owner] Scott Malkin." When Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo announced that the Islanders' group was awarded the development rights to the state-owned land at Belmont in December, he also listed Madison Square Garden as part of the joint venture behind the Islanders' arena plans. Leiweke said Wednesday that Madison Square Garden's involvement in the Islanders' project has only been through its equity stake in Oak View Group. "They were obviously aware of what we were doing," Leiweke said, "a willing participant in what we were doing, and a fan of that." On Monday, Madison Square Garden said it's selling its stake in the company called Azoff MSG Entertainment — an original investor three years ago in Oak View Group — to entertainment executive Irving Azoff for $125 million. "While we have sold our stake in Azoff MSG Entertainment, we remain confident that Tim and OVG – who bring decades of experience in arena development — will bring a world-class sports and entertainment destination to Belmont Park," MSG spokeswoman Kimberly Kerns said. Subscribe to Newsday's sports newsletter Receive stories, photos and videos about your favorite New York teams plus national sports news and events. Sign up By clicking Sign up, you agree to our privacy policy. Leiweke said that deal is "separate and bigger" than what's happening at Belmont. Oak View Group, which began in 2015 as a partnership between Leiweke and Azoff MSG Entertainment, announced earlier this year that it received a capital investment from private equity technology firm Silver Lake, also an investor in UFC. Oak View Group also is set to begin a $700-million renovation on Seattle's KeyArena in preparation for a potential NHL expansion team. By Jim Baumbach jim.baumbach@newsday.com Jim Baumbach is an award-winning investigative and enterprise reporter in the sports department at Newsday, where he has worked since 1998. He also is the student newspaper adviser at St. John's University. ### Comments We're revamping our Comments section. Learn more and share your input. ### Most popular Glauber: Andrew Luck walks off on own terms Alonso hits 41st HR, but Diaz is hurting as Mets lose Giants' Golden impressed with Jones' accuracy Cops: 6 hurt from lightning strike at Tour Championship Jets' offense struggles to move the ball against Saints ### Latest Islanders headlines LIRR Elmont station projected to be ready in 2022 Brassard agrees to one-year deal with Isles Isles' Greiss hoping to form bond with Varlamov Islanders sign Josh Ho-Sang, Michael Dal Colle Lamoriello: Isles needed Belmont arena to stay on LI Isles' Belmont arena receives final state approval ### New York Sports Matz 'fantastic' despite blister on finger Braves silent Mets' bats to complete sweep Sam Darnold ready to get season started Alonso hits 41st HR, but Diaz is hurting as Mets lose Alonso describes 'special moment' of tying Mets record Jets' offense struggles to move the ball against Saints
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Oak View Group
History & Business Developments.
The new arena will also be home to the WNBA's Seattle Storm. On December 4, 2017, the Seattle City Council voted 7–1 to approve a memorandum of understanding with the Oak View Group for the redevelopment, which will build a new subterranean arena on the existing site while retaining the historical landmarked roof and three exterior walls. Demolition and construction for the new arena began in 2018 and will be fully completed in 2021. The company was competing against a rival proposal by Chris Hansen. 
 On December 7, the NHL's board of governors agreed to consider an application for an expansion team from Seattle, with an expansion fee set at $650 million. The Seattle ownership group is represented by David Bonderman and Jerry Bruckheimer. On February 20, Mayor Jenny Durkan launched an NHL campaign during her State of the Union and announced that the Oak View Group would be initiating a season ticket drive on March 1, 2018. Upon completion, OVG will manage the new Seattle Center Arena. 
