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Part of Aqueduct Entertainment Group’s plan, shown here, depicts an atrium near the entrance of the Ozone Park track.

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The winning bidder of the contract to build and operate video lottery terminals at Aqueduct Race Track has strong ties to the Rev. Floyd Flake, the influential minister at Allen A.M.E Cathedral in Jamaica.

Flake, a former congressman from southeast Queens, is an adviser to Aqueduct Entertainment Group on non-gaming development and Minority and Women-Owned Business Enterprise issues, according to AEG spokesman Andrew Frank.

Flake also created Empowerment Development Corporation, which is part of AEG’s bid and developed 1,300 units of housing in Queens.

A spokesman for Gov. David Paterson shot down speculation that the governor in part decided to select AEG out of five bidders because of Flake’s ties to the group and would hope to get Flake’s support for re-election.

“That has nothing to do with it,” said spokesman Morgan Hook. “AEG was selected because it was the best bidder for the state.”

Paterson finally made a decision Friday as to which of five bidders will operate video lottery terminals at Aqueduct Race Track after nearly a year of delays.

Paterson chose Aqueduct Entertainment Group for the VLT contract, which he said was also agreed upon between state Senate leader John Sampson (D-Brooklyn) and state Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver (D-Manhattan).

“AEG has both the financial viability and ability to pay the required upfront licensing fee. AEG complied with every request made during the review process and addressed satisfactorily all matters related to licensing ability,” Paterson said in a statement.

“All of the groups have valid proposals, but AEG presented a comprehensive bid that enjoys community support and also offers strong marketing appeal,” he said. “I thank my colleagues in government for joining me in selecting AEG, so that the state may begin to benefit from the critical revenue stream that this important economic development project will generate.”

AEG’s bid includes 4,500 VLTs, an Aqueduct Racing Museum, a 2,400-car garage, a 300-room hotel, a 2,500-seat conference center, community meeting space, retail space and restaurants.

“Aqueduct Entertainment Group is honored to have been selected to operate the video lottery terminals at Aqueduct racetrack. As we have said since day one, Aqueduct Entertainment Group has the best team to design, develop and operate the facility,” said Jeffrey Levine, CEO of Levine Builders, a Douglaston-based company which is one of the groups comprising AEG.

“We know we will be a great partner with the state and the residents of Queens for years to come,” he said. “We look forward to completing the memorandum of understanding and beginning construction.”

Sen. Joseph Addabbo (D-Howard Beach) said the selection was “long overdue.”

“Certainly, this decision is a decision that could’ve been made back in August,” he said.

“I am confident [AEG] will do the right thing by the community,” Addabbo said. “Aqueduct Entertainment Group seems to be the one who understands the issues.”

Assemblywoman Audrey Pheffer (D-Rockaway Beach) applauded Paterson’s move in a statement.

“AEG is an organization who has long ties to the Queens community and has a unique and vast knowledge of the needs of our neighborhood,” she said. “The future of Aqueduct Race Track is vital to our community. I look forward to working closely with AEG to ensure a successful project.”

Also part of AEG is Navegante Gaming, which developed the MGM Grand Casino in Las Vegas; Turner Construction Company; The Darman Group, which was a consultant on Battery Park CIty and redeveloped a building materials supply house in Queens Village; PS&S Design, which will provide architectural, engineering and environmental consulting services to the Aqueduct project; electronics giant Siemens; and Clairvest Group Inc., a Canadian merchant bank that invests capital in entrepreneurial corporations.

Once a memorandum of understanding is signed off on, AEG said it would take six months to open 3,000 of the VLTs, Frank said. The entire project is expected to cost upwards of $500 million, he said.

AEG’s bid included a $200 million upfront payment to the state, but Silver conditionally approved of the bid with the stipulation that AEG increase the upfront payment to $300 million, among other considerations.

©2010 Community Newspaper Group