[NYguy]

https://www.crainsnewyork.com/politi...e-city-council

Related pleads its casino rezoning case at City Council


NICK GARBER
April 29, 2025

The Related Cos. begged the City Council on Tuesday to approve the zoning changes and payment scheme it needs to build a casino complex at Hudson Yards, urging lawmakers to give their $12 billion megaproject a chance and look past opposition from the managers of the High Line.

Tuesday’s hearing was the last formal chance for the project’s supporters and foes to influence lawmakers before they vote on Related’s proposal by early June. Rejecting it would likely bar the developer from even competing in the next phase, a state-led process to award up to three downstate casino licenses later this year. Related says a rejection would also foreclose the possibility of building anything on the 13-acre Western Rail Yards to the west of Hudson Yards.

“Our proposal is to transform that empty rail yard into a vibrant, connected part of the community,” Related CEO Jeff Blau told lawmakers. “Without a change here, this site will remain an undeveloped rail yard.”

Related is proposing to build a five-story casino with a 1,200-foot hotel tower on top; three apartment towers containing up to 4,000 apartments; and 6 acres of public open space. The developer needs council approval because it is trying to change the terms of a 2009 rezoning that called for six shorter buildings containing 5,800 homes. The change is controversial and has sparked opposition from the local community board, the Manhattan borough president and the nonprofit Friends of the High Line.

The project’s fate is now in the hands of the local councilman, Erik Bottcher, who gave no clear sign of where he stands during Tuesday’s hearing. Bottcher sounded skeptical of Related’s request to change the 2009 rezoning — which he said was “shaped by years of hard work and negotiation” — but he said Related had explained to him that that plan does not “pencil out” financially today.

“This is not just another land-use application,” Bottcher said. “This is a decision about one of the most valuable parcels of land in New York City and therefore one of the most valuable in the world.”

Indeed, Related is also asking the council to approve a new plan to pay for the project that would let the developer make payments in lieu of taxes in exchange for lower property taxes. Related released that plan just days ago, saying it would be the only way to pay for the 2,500 new housing units it added to its proposal in a last-minute effort to placate neighborhood opponents. Those two new residential towers replace a more lucrative office tower that would have financed much of the project, and Related says the PILOT plan will be required to build on the Western Rail Yards whether or not it gets a casino license.

Without the PILOT plan, Related would face about a $3 billion shortfall if it had to pay for the 4,000 homes and platform atop the railyards, Blau testified Tuesday.

The hearing showcased the rift that has emerged between the High Line and Related, which formerly had a warm relationship; Related donated more than $1 million to the group. Blau said his company had met with the High Line more than 10 times to try to resolve their concerns until “they no longer wanted to engage with us,” including after the developer added housing at the community’s request.

“I find it interesting that the High Line still opposes this — really showing their true colors, that this is really about NIMBY,” Blau said. “They don't want anything built here, and that would be a great loss to New York City.”