T20 World Cup Cricket tournament organizers failed to restore parks to original condition, court papers say

The operators of the T20 World Cup cricket tournament failed to restore Eisenhower and Cantiague parks back to their original condition following last summer's global event, according to a lawsuit filed by Nassau County.

The suit, filed in Nassau State Supreme Court in February, contends T20 organizers failed to meet a July 31 deadline to remove temporary fencing around the Eisenhower site that had been home to a 34,000 temporary cricket stadium; and to restore a Cantiague Park practice field or to provide reimbursement to the county for parking revenue from the tournament.

Newsday reported this month that the massive field at Eisenhower Park, near Parking Field 6A — where the stadium once stood — continues to be fenced off to the public and will not be accessible to the public until fall at the earliest.

'Settlement negotiations ongoing'

The lawsuit against Cowan, DeBaets, Abrahams & Sheppard LLP, which represented the T20 organizers, asks the court to release to the county $2 million held in escrow by the Manhattan law firm, citing breaches of the use and occupancy permit.

In a written comment to Newsday, Deputy County Attorney Dave DeBaun declined to comment on the substance of the litigation but added "there are settlement negotiations ongoing and both sides are hopeful that there will be a quick resolution. The work [to restore Eisenhower] continues and the lawsuit will not impact the schedule of completion."

The $2 million in escrow, DeBaun said, is "security for the performance of the repair work. It will be reconciled once the work is completed."

Chris Boyle, spokesman for Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman, said all repair work performed to date "has not been at the county's expense" and that the costs will be borne by the T20.

Attorneys with Cowan, DeBaets, Abrahams & Sheppard and their counsel in the case did not respond to requests for comment nor did officials with the T20 tournament.

In October 2023, the county and T20 signed an agreement allowing Eisenhower to host eight matches in the men's T20 World Cup, a 12-day international cricket tournament held last June that attracted spectators and competitors from across the globe. 

T20 built the temporary stadium on 19 acres of land at Eisenhower and were also given access to two fields in the northeast corner of Cantiague Park in Hicksville as a practice facility for competitors.

The use and occupancy permit, included as part of the lawsuit, stated that the organizer was "responsible for returning all lands and property used for the presentation of the event to their prior condition." T20 agreed to put $2 million in escrow to guarantee the performance of the contract, including removing all "temporary structures" related to the event by July 31, 2024.

Denying residents 'access'

While the stadium was taken down by the deadline, temporary fencing around the property was not, "denying Nassau County access to Field 6 and adjacent parking and interfering with park activity, including but not limited to an upcoming series of 5K running events. The fencing is also creating the potential safety hazard of requiring county residents to walk on the adjacent road," according to an Aug. 22, 2024 letter by Deputy County Attorney Richard Soleymanzadeh to T20 and their attorneys.

The letter added that T20 had yet to provide the county with records and payment for tournament parking and that the Cantiague practice field was not restored to its original condition.

A follow-up letter by Soleymanzadeh on Sept. 6 argued that T20 had "provided no meaningful resolution and continues to delay any progress in returning the public park back to its original use for county residents" and demanded the release of the escrow funds to perform the work. Once completed, the balance of the funds would be returned to T20, the letter states.

More than eight months later, the once lush grassy field at Eisenhower in East Meadow is nothing but soil enclosed by a massive fence. 

County workers are working to restore the field, spreading 9,000 yards of topsoil on the property, Boyle previously said. Seeding will begin after irrigation system upgrades are completed and the temporary fencing could be removed — and the site restored for public use — by early fall, Boyle said.

DeBaun said the county now has all the records related to the tournament's parking "and we are continuing to go over all of the debits and credits."

The Cantiague practice field, meanwhile, remains fenced off and unavailable for public usage.

The property, DeBaun said, "remains under the control of T20" until the field is fully restored, which would not occur until next month at the earliest to allow the Bermuda grass to grow.

Michael Pasqual, 71, of Westbury, runs past the Cantiague cricket field three times a week and said park managers should reopen the field, which was popular for pickup games and sunbathers, to allow public use.

"While I am sure someone has a plan in mind for the future of the Cantiague cricket areas, there has been no communication about those plans in the past year," Pasqual said. "At the very least, the park managers should unlock the gates to allow unfettered access during normal park hours."

By Robert Brodsky

[email protected]@BrodskyRobert

Robert Brodsky is a breaking news reporter who has worked at Newsday since 2011. He is a Queens College and American University alum.