NEW YORK | Casino Development| FT| FLOORS

[NYguy]

The city is looking to make sure it’s not limiting itself too much, and knocking off some of the old restrictions.


https://www.nyc.gov/office-of-the-ma...siness-growth-

Among these 18 changes are policies to:

- Update 1960s-era rules that limit where amusements are allowed, so experiential retail and family-friendly activities can be located closer to where New Yorkers live;

- Take advantage of the great economic opportunity casinos offer New York City by working with the City Council in New York state’s siting process;

[NYguy]

One of the dummist NIMBY arguments you’ll see anywhere…


https://www.brooklynpaper.com/coney-...am-bring-jobs/

Developers say proposed Coney Island casino would bring 4,000 new jobs to the People’s Playground


By Jada Camille
June 15, 2023

As they workshop their proposal to open a new casino in Coney Island, Thor Equities, the team of developers behind the bid, have announced they believe the new gaming facility would bring roughly 4,000 union jobs to the neighborhood.

According to Robert Cornegy, one of the partners on the pro-casino task force, the jobs would be within the hospitality, hotel and gaming realm, offering locals who have been detached from the ability to earn a decent wage year-round a chance to work 12 months out of the year in a “lucrative” industry.

​​“Being able to bring decent paying, year-round jobs is something that I feel like I am compelled to push and demand,” Cornegy told Brooklyn Paper. “For people of color, black people in particular, labor has created a pathway to the middle class in a lot of different industries. The hotel trade is one of the more lucrative opportunities.”

Lucy Mujica Diaz, chairperson for Community Board 13, is wary of the alleged employment opportunities the team boasts, claiming the jobs that are being offered may not be best for the make-up of the community. Diaz said she’d like to know what percentage of these jobs would go to locals, and what criteria would be used in hiring..

“I don’t see someone in hospitality lasting that long,” she said. “I don’t think it would be a good fit for some of the people because there are still unanswered questions.”

He said people tend to look down on these jobs even though they can offer wages up to $30 an hour and enticing benefits, and lead people toward upward mobility.

According to reports from the New York State Department of Labor, Kings County has an unemployment rate of 5.6% as of April 2023, lagging behind New York City’s unemployment rate of 5.3%.

Coney Island specifically falls behind in terms of income.. In 2018, the area held a poverty rate of 24%, compared to the city-wide rate of 20%. City data shows that just over 7% of working-age CB13 residents work in hospitality or the arts, with a median wage of $22,344 per year.

Diaz, however, said part of the issue is caused by residents who are housed through the New York City Housing Authority being concerned about meeting certain income criteria in order to keep their rent low.

According to city data, one in seven New Yorkers live in NYCHA housing, with Brooklyn housing 102,907 people within one of their 79 developments. Roughly 11,000 residents of Community Board 13 — which includes Coney Island and Brighton Beach — live in NYCHA residences.

NYCHA sets the household’s rent at either 30% of the household’s adjusted gross income or the flat rent, whichever is lower. According to Diaz, in certain cases, making even a dollar more in your salary can cause your NYCHA rent to increase, so people wouldn’t apply to the casino jobs because they wouldn’t want to see their rent increase.

“How do you guarantee a percentage of jobs are going into the community? You just can’t. You can’t tell me that 50% of those jobs will be for the community because I know for a fact many people that live in NYCHA housing will not take certain kinds of employment because it will cause them to go over their brackets and then their rent goes up double,” she said.

Additionally, Coney also has a high senior population that only need part-time work so that they will not lose their social security benefits.

“It’s not because people don’t want to work, it’s because if you work, they take more from you,” she said.

The pro-casino team is still in preliminary proposal stages. They are currently finishing their Request for Application and waiting on the state to announce a submission date. In the meantime, Cornegy said they are working to go beyond RFA requirements and still meet the demands of the neighborhood.

“This project looks to be one of the largest job creators in southern Brooklyn,” he said.

[NYguy]

JUNE 17, 2023


Some people think Times Square is above "thrill rides", or "casinos". They seem to think that it's all beneath the character of Times Square. I disagree. And I'm pretty sure most of the crowd there at any given time would also. Give the people more attractions!



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Furthermore, TSX Times Square will open, creating an even more lively Times Square. And the city is undergoing zoning changes to allow more amusements in areas of the city that aren't specifically zoned for such.


https://www.businesswire.com/news/ho...r-Times-Square

Slated to open to the general public in 2024, TSX Entertainment will be the ultimate entertainment destination where fans can attend epic events and experience artists’ defining moments firsthand. The 74,000 sq. ft. space boasts recording studios, an iconic supper club, galleries, restaurants, bars, rooftop terraces, and immersive experiences integrated with the TSX App and TSX Metaverse.

[NYguy]

https://www.nytimes.com/2023/06/23/n...lverstein.html

Mogul’s Manhattan Casino Pitch: A Location People Won’t Hate
Larry Silverstein joins a crowded, well-financed field of developers competing for three casino licenses in the New York City region






By Dana Rubinstein
June 23, 2023

The scrum of millionaires and billionaires hustling for the right to build a casino in New York City now includes Larry Silverstein, the real estate magnate who redeveloped much of the World Trade Center site after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

Mr. Silverstein, 92, has never owned or invested in a casino. But he controls a site at 11th Avenue and 41st Street, four blocks west of Times Square, that he says is perfect for one because it borders several neighborhoods but is central to none. For that reason, his team argues, the location is less likely than others to raise residents’ hackles.

For casino expertise, he has teamed up with Watche Manoukian, a businessman based in London who owns Parx Casino in Bensalem, Pa., that state’s highest grossing venue.

In an interview on Thursday, Mr. Silverstein suggested his bid was largely selfless: New York State, he said, needs tax revenue to support the transit system on which New York City’s economy depends. Casinos can provide it, and as a major landlord, he is invested in the city’s future.

“We do see it as a genuine need that the community has, the city and Albany,” Mr. Silverstein, the chairman of Silverstein Properties, said. “Will it be profitable? I presume so because generally, this has been the case with casinos at large.

It is a novel argument in a crowded, well-financed field of competitors teeming with unique pitches (one proposal involves a roller coaster; another, a Ferris wheel). About 10 teams are expected to bid for one of up to three licenses for full-scale casinos in the region.

The field includes SL Green Realty Corporation, which calls itself the city’s largest commercial landlord and wants to build a casino in Times Square with Caesars Entertainment; the Hudson Yards developer Related Companies and Wynn Resorts, which have proposed a casino on Manhattan’s Far West Side; the hedge fund manager Steven A. Cohen, who owns the New York Mets and has developed a bid with Hard Rock for a casino next to the team’s Queens stadium; and Las Vegas Sands, which wants to put a casino in Nassau County.

“We think one is going to go to Yonkers,” Marty Burger, the chief executive of Silverstein Properties, said. “And one is going to go to Aqueduct, and the third ones are up for grabs.”

State officials have not set a deadline for the submission of bids, and the approval process is expected to extend into next year. But Mr. Silverstein’s announcement is probably among the last major proposals to be unveiled before the formal bidding begins.

Mr. Cohen has not unveiled his proposal, but some details have begun to leak out. It involves turning a parking lot into a 25-acre park with a casino and connections to Flushing Bay, with a design by SHoP Architects, the firm that designed Barclays Center, according to a person who has seen the proposal.

On Wednesday, on the 38th floor at 7 World Trade Center, which Silverstein Properties owns and where it has its headquarters, company executives pitched local elected officials on their project, a 1.8-million-square-foot development called the Avenir.

Codesigned by Nancy Ruddy of the CetraRuddy architecture firm, the building would consist of two 46-story towers connected by a sky bridge and resting on an eight-story podium. The development would house at least one hotel, about 100 units of income-restricted housing, a penthouse performance hall and, at its base, the casino.

Like the Related Companies’ proposal, the Silverstein casino would be near the Javits Convention Center and the steady stream of people it draws to events there.

Political sentiment in Manhattan remains an obstacle.

“I don’t feel like there’s any momentum from actual voters or people who live here for a casino in Manhattan,” said Liz Krueger, a Democrat who chairs the State Senate’s Finance Committee.

State Senator Brad Hoylman-Sigal and Councilman Erik Bottcher, whose districts include the proposed site, attended the meeting on Wednesday. Both declined to comment on the proposal.

Casinos are a recently discovered interest for Mr. Silverstein. In 2017, he told the luxury real-estate publication Mansion Global that he disliked gambling. “I don’t go to racetracks,” he said. “I don’t go to the casinos. I don’t do any of that, but I enjoy buying real estate.”

On Thursday, Mr. Silverstein said his own distaste for gambling was beside the point.

“My personal predilections are subordinated to the needs of the community at large,” he said.

[NYguy]

More renderings....

[NYguy]

• Video Link

[NYguy]

https://cdcgaming.com/commentary/sen...new-york-city/

Sending in the clowns, a circus comes to New York City





Ken Adams
June 25, 2023

New York City has another bidder for one of its coveted casino licenses.

Larry Silverstein is proposing a site he owns in Hell’s Kitchen. He is partnering with Watche Manoukian and Greenwood Gaming, owner of the Parx casino in Pennsylvania. Silverstein believes no one will object to using his site, located near the entrance to the Lincoln Tunnel. He promises jobs, tax revenue, and development in an area that he said needs his project.

Being New York City, unlike casinos anywhere else in the country, the building will be tall, scraping the sky, as they say in the City. The proposal calls for two 46-story towers and an eight-story casino. There is a charm to those tall buildings, but elsewhere, casino developers have found that customers like to gamble on the ground floor. They don’t mind riding an elevator to a hotel room, but not a gambling table.

Silverstein is joining a group of would-be licensees, at least 10 by the time the bidding window closes. The other proposals are also partnerships between casino operators and landowners and/or developers. The casino companies are a who’s-who of gaming, including Wynn Resorts, Las Vegas Sands, Rush Street Gaming, Hard Rock International, Bally’s, and Caesars. The developers include Hudson’s Bay Company and its Saks Fifth Avenue, the owner of the New York Mets, Steve Cohen, and Coney Island. There are no lightweights in this contest.

In January, New York announced it would award three licenses in the New York City area, each license costing the winning bidder $500 million. The winning bidder will be expected to spend a billion dollars and hire thousands of New Yorkers. Although the state announced it would offer three licenses, two are probably already taken. Consensus has it that they will go to current operators of racinos, Genting of Resorts World New York City at Aqueduct Racetrack in Queens, and Empire City Casino in Yonkers owned by Vici Properties, a real estate investment trust (REIT), and operated by MGM Resorts.

We have already seen some startling plans, including Saks Fifth Avenue, Coney Island, Times Square, and now Hell’s Kitchen. The gaming companies will be important in the selection process, but probably less so than the location. Silverstein thinks his site will not be opposed, as Times Square and Coney Island have been, for example. But of course, that is not true. There will be critics, opponents, and something close to armed resistance as is developing around Times Square.

Every borough, every neighborhood, even every street has its own devotees. They celebrate their unique culture, history, and sense of place. One thing all those mini-cultural zones have in common is this: None has a casino in its DNA. The proposals will all have to win the approval of voters and local politicians. It is estimated that it will take at least a year before the final license is awarded. The other two could happen sooner and are not likely to generate as much resistance. The citizens of Queens and Yonkers have had many years to get used to the idea of gambling in their little corner of the Big Apple.

New York City is a big media town. Anyone who comes to town — athlete, musician, actor, artist, or candlestick maker — has to get used to the media. The New York Times and the rest of the city’s media will be following the casino process closely. At times, it will be a media circus. Due to the increased sensitivity to animal safety, there will be no elephants, tigers, or other animal acts. However, we can expect that a very large contingent of clowns will be sent into the ring.

[NYguy]

A little more on Silverstein’s bid…..


https://rew-online.com/silverstein-p...ce-the-avenir/

The Avenir will be designed jointly by Steelman Partners and CetraRuddy. The 46-story, distinctive two-tower complex will include a public sky bridge that connects the towers on the 45th floor. The 45th floor, located 630 feet above the street, will also feature the project’s signature design feature: a 1,000-seat performance hall, which will be available for use by local community and school groups along with world-class concerts in a stunning, intimate setting. The hall will be designed to complement – not compete with – Broadway theaters.

Steelman Partners is a global firm specializing in the multidisciplinary facets of entertainment architecture, interior design, graphic design, planning, theater design, 3D design, and lighting. The company currently has Las Vegas and international offices. Led by Founder and CEO Paul Steelman, the company’s notable projects include landmark casino resort projects in the United States as well as in Macau and The Philippines.

….. Art will also be a prominent feature of the Avenir, with public exhibition space reserved for local artists to display their work, which will be available for sale to the Avenir guests. At the same time, the project will include at least 12 full-service restaurants, along with a food hall showcasing local restaurants.

The development site is easily accessed by the Lincoln Tunnel and is within walking distance to the Port Authority Bus Terminal, Times Square, Grand Central Terminal, Penn Station and the Moynihan Train Hall, the A/C/E subway lines and PATH trains. It is also close to the NY Waterway pier at West 39th Street, which connects the site to six ferry routes originating from New Jersey.

In addition to the Javits Center, other attractions within walking distance of the Avenir include Times Square, Broadway theaters, the Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum, Circle Line Sightseeing Cruises, the Manhattan Cruise Ship terminal, Madison Square Garden, a high-end retail mall, and dozens of first-class dining options.

In recent years, the neighborhood, which extends from West 34th Street to West 57th Street, west of Eighth Avenue to the Hudson River, has seen an extraordinary transformation with the development of Hudson Yards to the south and the revitalization of Times Square to the east.

[NYguy]

https://www.casino.org/news/sands-le...-says-analyst/

Sands Frontrunner in New York, New Vegas Casinos on Backburner Says Analyst


June 28, 2023
Todd Shriber

Las Vegas Sands is considered one of the frontrunners to procure one of the three downstate casino permits in New York, according to a Wall Street analyst.

In a recent report to clients, Wells Fargo analyst Daniel Politzer noted that when accounting for the operator’s planned expenditures in Macau and what could be a $5 billion project in Nassau County, NY, Sands has the industry’s “most expensive and aspirational pipeline.”

We believe Sands is a front-runner, given the scale of its project, track record, and ability to work well with local constituencies,” said Politzer of Sands’ New York efforts.

He added that the operator’s proposal is “the most compelling” of the dozen or so that are vying for just three downstate permits. Sands has financial obligations to Nassau County regardless of whether or not it wins one of those licenses. In addition to enhancements in Macau, Singapore, and the prospect of building a new property in Uniondale, NY, LVS is eyeing Thailand as another destination for an integrated resort, but Politzer didn’t spill ink on that issue.

Don't believe any of what you read on who is a "frontrunner".

The decision will be based heavily on a few factors, but the heaviest is highlighted below. It's what I keep in mind when trying to sort through the circus.

[NYguy]

https://westchester.news12.com/betti...e-up-for-grabs

Betting on ‘The Coney:’ Casino executive hopes to nab coveted NY gaming license up for grabs


By: Lee Danuff and Tara Rosenblum
Jul 11, 2023

….Sam Gerrity, CEO of Saratoga Casino Hotel is hoping that one of those licenses will land in Coney Island.

"It's such a unique location...just look at some of the attractions that we have here," he says. "We're in the most famous city in the world in one of the most famous neighborhoods in New York City."

The casino and entertainment district, dubbed "The Coney," would feature a 330,000-square-foot gaming floor. Gerrity and his partners, Thor Equities, the Chickasaw Nation and Legends Global Planning also hope to build a 500-plus room hotel and a 90,000-square-foot, state-of-the-art convention center.

Gerrity says his goal is to revitalize the local economy, without losing its character.

"Brooklyn, is known for its vibrancy and its character and, and we don't plan to lose any of that, but just to add on top of it. We're proposing to invest $3 billion into the community," he says. "One of the nicest things is that we have the subway right here, which will be at the entrance of our entertainment district," he says.

Gerrity adds that his company is no stranger to betting big on the Empire State, having already built and operated the first "racino" in New York.

[Busy Bee]

Yeah I find the name mildly nauseating. It's a long road from unapproved, ungranted proposal and completion, so I wouldn't presume that's necessarily the final branding.

[NYguy]

Please. If the name is the only thing bothering people, then by all means, don’t go. The millions who would go to a casino complex won’t give a rat’s ass what its called. Just as long as they can get in.

[Busy Bee]

Thank you NYguy for slicing through the noise and getting to the heart of the matter.

Nobody is claiming the name will cause people not to attend by bringing about cataclysmic universal repulsion. That doesn't change the fact the name kinda sucks.

[NYguy]

Originally Posted by Busy Bee

Thank you NYguy for slicing through the noise and getting to the heart of the matter.

It's what I do.

[mrnyc]

^ oh please, its not the name, its the destruction of coney island via corporate takeover. ‘they’ have been looking for any excuse to clear out any vestiage of old coney for ever. what they should do instead is add more amusement rides, not gambling.

[mrnyc]

but speaking of noise, here is a little something via brooklyn vegan — no idea if its connected to a casino, but possible i guess — its off the announcement that rolling loud nyc music festival at citifield parking lot is not happening this year:


Rolling Loud's announcement comes the same year that Governors Ball, another festival that had happened at Citi Field's parking lot for its past few editions, announced a move to Flushing Meadows Corona Park. While that move has been in the works for a while, there have been ongoing discussions over building a casino near Citi Fields. There's no word on whether that had anything to do with either festival's decisions, however. Stay tuned for any further updates.

[NYguy]

Originally Posted by mrnyc

^ oh please, its not the name, its the destruction of coney island via corporate takeover. ‘they’ have been looking for any excuse to clear out any vestiage of old coney for ever. what they should do instead is add more amusement rides, not gambling.

Oh Kaaayyyyy.

[NYguy]

https://nypost.com/2023/03/22/bettor...s-into-casino/

Queens lawmaker submits bill to convert Mets’ Citi Field parking lots into casino


By Carl Campanile
March 22, 2023

New Yorkers could be singing take me out to the casino if a Queens pol has his way!

Assemblyman Jeffrion Aubry introduced legislation Wednesday that would allow Mets owner Steve Cohen to redevelop the overflow parking lots around the baseball team’s Citi Field into a casino and entertainment complex.

The lots and other property around Citi Field in Willets Point are deemed parkland — designated as part of Flushing Meadows-Corona Park back in 1939.

A change in state law is required to allow for other uses.

So Aubry, who represents Corona and parts of Flushing — is swinging the zoning bat and rolling the dice for Cohen and his development firm New Green Willets LLC.

“The city of New York is authorized to discontinue the use as parkland and alienate through the entering of leases or other agreements with New Green Willets, LLC … for the purposes of developing, constructing, maintaining, operating, using, or occupying such lands with a gaming facility,” the text of the bill says.

Aubry told The Post that he wanted to give Cohen’s team a shot at winning the casino bid.

“They would not be able to compete without the legislation. They should have an opportunity to compete,” Aubry said.

“I’m also interested in the jobs and opportunities that would be provided to the local communities.”

Just as important, Aubrey said, is that a public park and path would run connecting the Willets Point No. 7 station to the Flushing Marina as part of the redevelopment.

Public access to Flushing Bay is now limited, he said.

State Sen. Jessica Ramos, who also represents the area that includes the Cohen property, Flushing Meadows-Corona Park and surrounding neighborhoods, had no immediate comment.

[Busy Bee]

Booooo!

[NYguy]

https://patch.com/new-york/gardencit...ublicity-stunt

Nassau Casino Moves Ahead; Opponents Decry 'Publicity Stunt'





Jerry Barmash
Apr 27, 2023

The ink is barely dry on the lease agreement between Nassau County and Las Vegas Corporation, but the criticism is as fresh as ever for bringing a casino to the Nassau Hub. County Executive Bruce Blakeman fronted the announcement Wednesday of the $4-billion pact to ultimately build a world-class hotel, casino and entertainment space.

It's the middle part of that equation that has angered some people, including Allison O'Brien-Silva, with the "Say No to the Casino" activist group.

"[Blakeman] had nothing to celebrate," she told Patch. "It was just a publicist stunt to try to convince folks that this proposal is a done deal."

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/artic...casino-license

Billionaire Steve Cohen Has a Plan to Become the King of Queens
To win a coveted New York casino license, he’s ‘hired the best team that money can buy.’





ByLaura Nahmias and Gregory Korte
April 28, 2023

Steve Cohen likes to boast that he’ll spend whatever it takes to win.

He did it over three decades building his $27.2 billion investment business, buying the New York Mets for $2.4 billion in 2020 and then assembling a team to win the World Series at such incredible cost — his $353 million payroll is the highest in MLB history — that rival owners dubbed a penalty teams must pay when their payroll exceeds a certain level the “Cohen tax.” (The Cohen Mets haven’t won a World Series yet.)

Now, he’s at it again in an effort to win one of the most lucrative prizes in gambling: one of three licenses to build a casino in New York City, an opportunity that’s drawn some of the biggest names in real estate and gaming.

At least half of the proposals are targeting Manhattan, where a casino would probably be the most lucrative — including for the state, which gets a sizable cut of any revenue. Caesars Entertainment Inc. wants to place slots, poker and roulette tables in the building that’s home to The Lion King in Times Square. Saks Fifth Avenue is eyeing a boutique casino atop its flagship store, while Stefan Soloviev has pitched a gaming complex near the United Nations.

Cohen is proposing a casino next to the Mets’ Citi Field in Queens on what’s currently a vast parking lot and park.

It’s an expensive competition, with the state charging $500 million for each license and requiring a minimum $500 million investment. Collectively, bidders are spending a fortune on pitches for casinos from midtown Manhattan to Nassau County on Long Island. But Cohen is outspending all the new entrants into New York’s casino market. The hedge fund titan, worth $13.1 billion according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, has hired eight firms, employing nearly two dozen lobbyists to woo elected officials across city and state government as well as the local community.