New York is rolling the dice on gambling à la Las Vegas, with the state on Monday granting the final go-ahead to three casinos planned in the city.
The New York State Gaming Commission voted to approve gaming licenses for two casinos in Queens and one in the Bronx as expected after a lengthy process that had a variety of high-profile projects vying for licenses. They included several proposals, ultimately rejected, by operators looking to open casinos in Manhattan. A five-member Gaming Facility Location Board on Dec. 1 approved the three proposals that needed the final clearance by the gaming commission.
Monday's approvals included one for the $8.1 billion Metropolitan Park bid by Steve Cohen, the New York Mets owner and billionaire hedge fund investor, and his partner, Hard Rock International. They are looking to transform roughly 50 acres of parking lots around the Citi Field baseball stadium in Queens to gaming, creating a sports-and-entertainment destination.
"Since the day I bought the team, the community and Mets fans have made it clear to me that we can and should do better with the area around the ballpark," Cohen said in a statement. "Now, we are going to be able to deliver the sports and entertainment district that our fans have been asking for."
Also in Queens, the $5.5 billion Resorts World New York City plan, undertaken by Malaysia's Genting Group, won approval to expand the existing casino at Aqueduct Racetrack into a 5.6 million-square-foot venue.
And in the Bronx, Bally's obtained license approval to build a $4 billion hotel and casino resort at Bally's Golf Links at Ferry Point. The Trump Organization once operated that course, then called Trump Golf Links. Bally's took it over in 2023 and was slated to pay the Trump Organization $115 million if it were to ever obtain a casino license, according to media reports.
The gaming commission's vote marks "the culmination of a multi-year, community-driven process to ensure that casino licenses were only awarded to proposals that had local support, clear community benefits and sustainable economic plans," New York Gov. Kathy Hochul said in a statement.
“The three approved casinos will generate billions of dollars for the MTA and education, create tens of thousands of jobs and deliver real benefits to their surrounding communities," she said. "Each of the projects made significant commitments to their communities and to New York State, and the Gaming Commission was clear that they will hold these projects accountable and make sure they keep their promises."
Each of the license winners will have to fork over a $500 million fee.