After Hudson Yards Casino Project Folds, Yonkers Mayor Urges NYS to Grant Full Gaming Licenses Now to Empire City, Resorts World NYC

YONKERS—Shortly after news came out that backers of a proposal to build a casino at Hudson Yards in Manhattan had thrown in the towel, Yonkers Mayor Mike Spano called upon New York State to grant full gaming licenses to the two existing racino facilities in the New York metro area—Empire City Casino by MGM Resorts in Yonkers and Resorts World New York City at Aqueduct in Queens.

“We have two racinos whose owners are ready to pay the state a billion dollars in application fees today, and to start generating hundreds of millions of dollars in new taxes tomorrow,” said Mayor Spano. “We all know that the cutbacks from Washington are going to cause holes in the state and local budgets by the end of the year, so let’s be proactive.”

Related Companies and Wynn Resorts announced on Monday they had dropped their bid to build a casino on the Western Rail Yards at Hudson Yards. Earlier this spring, Las Vegas Sands announced in its first quarter earnings report that it was abandoning its proposed casino project at the Nassau Coliseum property in West Hempstead.

Wynn Resorts said it became clear through the rezoning process that there are better uses for its capital, according to CNBC. Wynn Resorts has surrendered to the inevitability of “years of persistent opposition,” according to a company-issued news release. In April, the New York City Council approved a rezoning plan for the $12-billion Hudson Yards casino project despite intense local opposition.

Related Companies on May 19 also stated that the Wynn Resorts casino would not be the anchor for its Far West Side site. Instead, the firm announced it would build thousands of units of new housing on the site adjacent to the Hudson River. The New York Times reports that the new plan will feature up to 4,000 new residences. Most of the housing units would be apartments, and at least 400 of them would be rented below market rate. It would include a 6.6-acre park.

Some of the remaining bidders for the gaming licenses include SL Green Realty Corporation and Caesars Entertainment, which want to build a casino in Times Square; New York Mets Owner Steve Cohen and Hard Rock International, who are looking to build a casino near Citi Field in Flushing, Queens; Bally’s, which wants to put a casino in the Bronx; and World Trade Center developer Larry Silverstein, who is working with Rush Street Gaming and Greenwood Gaming and Entertainment to build a casino in Manhattan.

Analysts say that the front runners for two of the possible three gaming licenses are Resorts World, which hopes to build a multi-billion-dollar gaming complex at its existing Resorts World New York City facility at Aqueduct in Jamaica, Queens and the Empire City Casino by MGM Resorts in Yonkers, which could secure the key zoning approval by the Yonkers City Council later this month.

“New York should move ahead right away with the two proposals that enjoy community support and are shovel-ready to go,” said Yonkers Mayor Spano. “We’ve already lost too much time. Let’s not lose any more.”

Mayor Spano said the plan to convert the Empire Casino in Yonkers would result in the following economic benefits:

• $34 million in annual funds to the City of Yonkers, an increase of $15 million annually
• More than 2,000 new direct hires (tripling the existing workforce at Empire City Casino)
• More than $340 million in 10-year gaming tax benefit to the City of Yonkers
• $170 million in 10-year gaming tax benefit to Westchester County

“This is an unmatched opportunity for Yonkers and our region, let’s not lose momentum – because we all can win!” Mayor Spano noted.

Under the New York State Gaming Commission’s current timeline, up to three downstate casino licenses will be awarded in December.