The New York Mets’ ballpark in Queens. A Bronx golf course once operated by President Donald Trump ’s company. A slot parlor on a horse racing track near John F. Kennedy International Airport.
The three disparate sites, located far from the tourist hub of Manhattan, will become the future homes of New York City’s first Las Vegas-style resort casinos.
The state Gaming Commission on Monday awarded the three projects licenses to operate in the lucrative metropolitan-area market during a meeting at a riverside park in upper Manhattan.
The panel approved the licenses with the condition that the companies each appoint an outside monitor that would report regularly to the commission to ensure they meet their financial and legal obligations, as well as the promised investments they made to local communities.
Brian O’Dwyer, the commission’s chair, said the state looked forward to the promise of jobs, infrastructure improvements and gaming revenue being realized.
“You all have an important charge ahead of you, and you can be assured that this commission takes our responsibility to keep your feet to the fire with great respect,” he said to the project representatives in attendance.
Democratic New York Gov. Kathy Hochul said in a statement the projects would pump billions of dollars into the state’s transit and education systems and create tens of thousands of jobs.
But a handful of protesters opposed to billionaire Mets owner Steve Cohen’s Hard Rock plan vowed to continue their fight in court. They and other casino opponents worry the projects will only increase gambling addiction.
“You picked a billionaire over New Yorkers! Shame on you!” the group shouted as they walked out of the meeting.
Cohen and Hard Rock’s proposal calls for an $8.1 billion casino complex on a parking lot next to the Mets’ Citi Field that would include a performance venue, hotel and retail space.
Bally’s has proposed a roughly $4 billion casino at the Ferry Point golf course in the Bronx that would include a hotel, event center, meeting spaces, restaurants and other amenities.
And Resorts World has proposed investing more than $5 billion to expand its slots parlor at Aqueduct Race Track in Queens into a full casino with a hotel, dining and entertainment options.
The projects bested several other proposals that fell by the wayside during the high-stakes competition.
Among them were three casinos proposed for Manhattan that were rejected by local boards, including a Caesars Palace in the heart of Times Square backed by rapper Jay-Z. A plan for a resort on Coney Island’s iconic boardwalk in Brooklyn was also defeated by local opposition, and MGM abruptly pulled out of the once-crowded sweepstakes, despite local support.
The state gaming commission was authorized to license up to three casinos in the New York City area after voters approved a referendum in 2013 opening the door to casino gambling statewide.
Four full casinos, all upstate, now offer table games. The state also runs nine gambling halls without live table games, many of them also miles away from Manhattan.
Monday’s decision, in some ways, was largely a formality. Millions of dollars in gambling revenues are already factored into the state budget.
A state panel charged with vetting the proposals for the commission also recommended awarding a license to all three remaining proposals earlier this month.
The Gaming Facility Location Board, in its written decision, argued that the region’s dense and relatively affluent population, combined with high tourism, would be able to support all three plans, despite their relative proximity to each other.
The panel said its consultants conservatively estimated the casinos would generate a combined $7 billion in gambling tax revenues from 2027 to 2036, plus $1.5 billion in licensing fees and nearly $6 billion in state and local taxes.
Monday’s decision also means Trump could stand to claim a substantial prize. When Bally’s purchased operating rights for the city-owned Ferry Point golf course from the Trump Organization in 2023, it agreed to pony up an additional $115 million if it won a casino license.
Spokespersons for the Trump Organization didn’t respond to an email seeking comment Monday on the expected windfall.
