Nassau County lawmakers on Monday accepted the final environmental impact statement that studies the now-defunct, casino-resort proposal at the Nassau Coliseum.

The vote to accept the findings officially ends the county legislature’s involvement in a court-ordered, state environmental approval process for a plan first pitched by Las Vegas Sands in 2022. Sands had proposed to build an “integrated resort” on the 72-acre, county-owed Coliseum property in Uniondale.

After the vote, Presiding Officer Legis. Howard Kopel (R-Lawrence) said he was “delighted” that all legislators voted in favor of the environmental review.

“This is going to create enormous opportunity for the county to go ahead and build something wonderful that is going to provide tremendous benefit to the county and all of its residents,” Kopel said.

It was still unclear what would be built, however, after Sands, a multibillion-dollar corporation, announced at the end of April it would not bid on one of three state gambling licenses available for the downstate region. The licenses — which cost $500 million to apply for by June 27 — allow for a casino resort to include traditional, live-dealer table games such as poker and black jack. Sands and Nassau County officials failed to secure another casino company to take over the application as they had promised after Sands announced it was dropping out.

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The Nevada-based company holds a 42-year lease to operate the Coliseum and surrounding land that could be reassigned to another developer. Sands executives had been seeking a 99-year lease to build a Vegas-style casino, live-entertainment venue, convention center, restaurants, shops, public gathering space, a day spa and wellness center. The 99-year lease was tied to getting the state gambling license, but Sands would have the ability to transfer the environmental approvals to another company.

Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman, during a visit to Albany last Thursday, told Newsday it would be “very, very unlikely” a gambling license application would be submitted by any developer wanting to build a casino-resort at the Coliseum. Instead, he said “we are going to pursue a different direction,” or what he called “Plan B,” a development without a state gambling license.

On Monday, Blakeman, a Republican, said in a statement to Newsday that the county and Sands “are anxious to develop the Coliseum site by making it a vibrant, exciting and energetic experience.”

Representatives of construction and trades unions, business groups and local chambers of commerce that supported the project throughout told legislators they believed it was the “most comprehensive” study of the Coliseum site they have ever seen and the mitigation efforts adequately address all of the community and environmental concerns. Sands was willing to widen the Meadowbrook Parkway, repair several bridges and build a water well that also would supply homes in the surrounding communities.

Michael Levoff, Sands senior vice president, said the vote “marks a critical milestone.”

“We are grateful to the legislators, residents, union members, and community leaders who have helped create this opportunity. Their voices have been made clear: Nassau deserves a bold, forward-looking investment at the Coliseum site. With the FEIS complete, we are one step closer to achieving this vision,” Levoff said.

Those who opposed the casino-resort project say the traffic in the area is already too high and the location is too close to thousands of college and high school students. Hofstra University in Hempstead was among the first and most vocal detractors, filing a lawsuit against Blakeman, legislators and the county that alleged violations of the state’s Open Meetings law — forcing the legislature to redo its vote on the Sands lease and take on the state environmental process.

Members of a community group, Say No to the Casino, said they were disappointed in the vote. They were not at the meeting and said lawmakers did not provide advance notice of a planned vote.

“We remain hopeful that County Executive Blakeman lives up to his stated commitment for a ‘Plan B’ development that does not include gambling,” the group said in a statement.

Sands also is asking Town of Hempstead officials to rezone the Coliseum site and nearby Marriott hotel property to build higher and allow gambling, combining both parcels into a new hospitality district, which the Say No group is also against. Town officials are expected to hold a meeting on the rezoning Tuesday at 10:30 a.m. in Town Hall.

“There is no absolutely no reason why this taxpayer-owned property should ever be rezoned to allow gambling,” the community group’s statement said.

Monday’s approval follows legislators’ unanimous vote last month to publicly release the more than 28,000-page environmental impact statement, which includes studies of traffic, pollution, water usage and socioeconomic implications, and to keep open a written public comment period until May 30.