NEW YORK | Hudson Yards Phase 2 | 1,376 - 1,189 - 1,180 FT | 80/80/74 FLOORS

[NYguy]

https://www.buyingnyc.com/news?page=11

Q&A: Related's CEO makes the case for more offices, less housing and a James Bond-worthy casino


08/07/2024

Let’s start by describing your casino proposal and what it would bring to the city.

We’ve partnered with Wynn Resorts to develop a world-class resort that would anchor the development of the western rail yards, including a 2 million square-foot office building and another 1 million square-foot residential building. It would include great community benefits, including 324 affordable housing units, a K-8 public school, and a large-scale public open space that would be bigger than Bryant Park.

There is no comparable economic-development opportunity in the city, and there hasn’t been anything like this since probably the first half of Hudson Yards or, going back in time, Rockefeller Center or the redevelopment of the World Trade Center. There would be over 35,000 construction jobs and over 5,000 permanent jobs in the resort alone.


What do you think your odds are of winning the casino license given that elected officials including State Sen. Brad Hoylman-Sigal, City Council member Erik Bottcher and Assemblyman Tony Simone have not been speaking very warmly about your bid?

We think we have lots of public support for this project for all the reasons that we’ve just described. And we will continue to talk to the elected officials and the community groups as we go through this process, which will continue well into 2025.

Community Board 4 has criticized your plan because you’re proposing to build just 1,500 apartments in the western half of Hudson Yards, and under a 2009 zoning deal Related agreed to build 5,700. Why are you backing away when there’s a big housing shortage?

So the zoning actually created the flexibility to adjust for economic conditions. And what we have seen over time is increased demand for first-class new office buildings and less demand for luxury condos, more demand for rental and affordable housing. What’s being eliminated is a super-luxury condominium building in the middle of the park.

Manhattan’s office vacancy rate is about 20%. Does it give you pause to add 2 million square feet of new office space in a market like this?

We have seen unprecedented demand here at Hudson Yards for these new modern office towers and are very confident in our ability to lease this new building.


If you don’t win the casino license, would you still build a new office tower, housing and a school in Hudson Yards?

It would not be on the same timeline at all because the infrastructure costs of building this platform have escalated so dramatically, and the resort is really the economic engine that’s paying for a big portion of this. I couldn't tell you when the western yards would get developed absent the resort but it still would be.


The nonprofit Friends of the High Line also doesn’t like the idea of a Hudson Yards casino. Is there any room for compromise?

We’ve met with them over 10 times and have actually made significant modifications to our plan based on all their physical suggestions on site. We’re hopeful that we're able to continue the dialogue with them. But if their real desire is to have a kind of anti-development approach, then you know, I’m not sure there’s going to be anything to work out here.


When Hudson Yards was first developed, it was granted significant property tax discounts, called PILOTs, which have about another 20 years to go. As part of the western expansion, would you seek a similar discount arrangement with the city?

The answer is we’re not sure yet. We have not gotten to the tax component of this, so I don’t really have an answer for you.


You’ve said you envision a James Bond sort of casino, very high-end. Would there be a dress code?

Nobody wants to pick up Las Vegas and drop it into New York City because that’s not what Hudson Yards is about. This will be a resort that’s designed to be consistent with what we have here at Hudson Yards; we would design something that is reflective of New York and fits in New York. People will come from around the world to go to a Wynn Resort in New York City.

You know, many casino resorts are very closed and insular where you go in and you never go out, but the whole idea here is to get people to New York and have them experience New York. We in particular decided not to build a theater at the resort, but instead would put in a concierge who would help guests get to Broadway shows or to the Shed.