New York Board Holds First Casino License Application Review Meeting

The New York Gaming Facility Location Board (GFLB) met to discuss the ongoing race for three available casino operators’ licenses for the first time on Wednesday.

Eight casino projects went before six-member Community Advisory Committees, each of which was responsible for voting to recommend or reject the proposals by the end of September. Four projects received approval and were advanced to the Gaming Facility Location Board for a final review.

However, one of the four will be the odd one out since there are only three licenses available.

Projects up for consideration

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) announced several years ago that she would authorize several downstate New York casino licenses, expanding the state’s thriving gaming market.

The first projects to receive approval were MGM Empire City in Yonkers and Resorts World in Queens. Both proposals have long been considered frontrunners to receive operators’ licenses due to their previous history of operating racinos in New York City.

Bally’s in the Bronx was also approved for final consideration. The project had been considered dead at one point after it was omitted from a zoning agreement, although that was vetoed by NYC Mayor Eric Adams, thereby reviving the project. It was then approved by its CAC near the end of September.

New York Mets owner Steve Cohen’s Metropolitan Park received approval on the final day that votes could be held. 

The four projects must submit all relevant supplemental details and information for their application to the Location Board by Oct. 14.

The three projects that receive approval will need to pay a one-time $500 million licensing fee.

The Board prepares for its decision

Spectrum News reported that GFLB Chair Vicki Been asserted that the primary focus of the application review process will be to assess the economic viability and impact. One of the key considerations in that will be if the project will help generate revenue for the state.

The GFLB will also consider the casinos’ impact on housing, employment, and development within downstate New York.

“One of the things we have to look at is, ‘What is the overall financial picture?’” said Been. “What kind of revenue are they going to be bringing into the state based on a dynamic financial analysis of how they are going to interact?.”

The GFLB is comprised of five members.

Cindy Estrada, who was appointed less than two weeks ago, is a longtime Bronx resident, small business owner, and the executive director of the New York City Hispanic Chamber of Commerce.

Teryl Brown is the vice president and general counsel at Pace University, a private school in New York.

Marion Phillips III is the senior vice president for community development and DEI at US News & World Report.

Greg Reimers is a former executive at J.P. Morgan, Chase, and The Bank of New York.

Chair Been is the longest-serving member, having been appointed in Oct. 2022. She is the Judge Edward Weinfeld Professor of Law at New York University School of Law, but she also admitted she had never been to a casino.