Downstate casino licensing: Community panel support may be the highest hurdle

Two bidders found out last week what handicappers have been saying all along about the race for three downstate casino licenses in New York: Winning approval from a local advisory board might be the hardest step.

A proposed Times Square casino — backed by rapper Jay-Z — and another on Manhattan’s West Side were voted down Wednesday by local screening panels. That kills those projects and leaves six remaining competitors for licenses slated to be awarded this year.

Even some of them might face similar problems, based on public hearings over the summer. The key question is how many bidders will be left standing by Sept. 30 — the deadline for securing local approval.

"What if only two get through?" said Bennett Liebman, a government law professor at Albany Law School of Union University and a former member of the state Racing and Wagering Commission, the forerunner to today’s state Gaming Commission.

He called the prospect unlikely but not impossible.

Some of the six remaining bidders have heard vocal opposition to their casino proposals in the past month, as they conducted state-mandated public hearings.

For instance, at Coney Island, brawls broke out between casino supporters and opponents, the Brooklyn Paper reported. Speakers struggled to make themselves heard over the crowd noise and police broke up skirmishes.

That proposed casino, dubbed "The Coney," is headed by real-estate developer Thor Industries.

The others would be located at Aqueduct Racetrack (Queens), near Citi Field (Queens), East Side (Manhattan) near the United Nations, Ferry Point (Bronx) and Yonkers Raceway.

All must receive a "yes" local vote by Sept. 30 to be considered by the state Gaming Facility Location Board. So far, the East Side/U.N. proposal is slated for a vote Monday; Yonkers and Resorts World/Aqueduct, Thursday.

Winners are expected to be announced in December.

Ensuring local support

When the State Legislature enacted the law authorizing three downstate casinos, it wanted to make sure developers secured local support. It created the five- or six-member "community advisory committees" — appointed by elected officials — where bidders had to win at least two-thirds of the votes.

Winning that support could be seen as the highest hurdle — certainly for bidders in Manhattan, Brooklyn and the Bronx.

The Times Square and the West Side proposals each lost the vote, 4-2. In each instance, the projects were supported by appointees of Gov. Kathy Hochul and New York Mayor Eric Adams but opposed by everyone appointed by a local official — borough president, city council member, state senator and state assemblyman.

"They had to know this was the hardest row to hoe," Liebman said. "They had to convince four locally elected people a casino is good for their neighborhood."

After the votes, those locally elected people hailed the outcome.

"Today's vote to stop both casino proposals is a reflection of the community’s wishes," said Assemb. Tony Simone (D-Manhattan). "Today was a win for this community."

"I heard from residents and workers in both the areas of Times Square and Hell’s Kitchen about a casino’s likely effects on an already strained transportation system, adding congestion on crowded streets and sidewalks, unsafe street conditions, and exacerbating public health and safety issues in an area already facing quality-of-life challenges," said Manhattan Borough President Mark Levine.

Upcoming votes

The Resorts World/Aqueduct proposal has been seen by many as a front-runner — in part because Resorts World has operated a massive video slot machine parlor there for years and, therefore, wouldn’t be seen as overhauling the community.

Similarly, the Yonkers Raceway video slots operation has been in place for years, and the proposal to expand to a full casino received strong support at a recent hearing, according to News 12 Westchester.

Like Coney Island, the Bronx Ferry Point project — site of a former Trump golf course — drew heated reactions at a public hearing. Police ushered out disrupters, and the committee at one point called a recess to cool down proceedings. However, a majority of speakers favored the project, according to the Bronx Times.

At the hearing for the proposed MetroPark/Citi Field casino — a project led by Mets owner Steve Cohen — proceedings were closed abruptly when opponents clashed with a committee member, according to the Queens Daily Eagle.

The East Side/U.N. project — dubbed Freedom Plaza — drew mixed reaction, though multiple reports said supporters seemed to be the majority of those making public statements.

The key question about the local committees, Liebman said, becomes "will the same voting patterns emerge?"

By Yancey Roy

yancey.roy@newsday.com@yanceyroy