Wynn, Related Companies Suffer Setback in Bid for New York Casino License

Wynn and The Related Companies’ plan for a bid at a New York casino license hit a snafu on Monday.

The Manhattan Community Board 4 (MCB4) unanimously voted against the zoning changes needed to allow the companies’ casino plan to move forward. Although MCB4 has no say in the eventual decision to award a license to Wynn, it is symbolic of the local opposition the project will face.

The New York State Gaming Commission (NYSGC), as orchestrated by New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, will award three casino licenses later this year.

Locals say “no”

MCB4’s biggest issue with the casino proposal is Related’s hesitance to proceed with a previous arrangement that would bring more housing units to local communities.

Related already had an agreement from 2009 in place with MCB4 that called for the creation of 5,762 housing units. The $12 billion plan in Western Yards in Manhattan was supposed to primarily include office space and the living areas.

The new plan, submitted last year, detailed plans for three towers, two of which would be commercial and one of which would contain 1,500 living spaces. One of the three towers would occupy a whopping three million square feet and emblazon the Wynn company logo.

Throughout the casino bidding process, Related repeatedly reinforced its plan to bring not only housing, but also a new school and open greenery to the area. However, the absence of more than 4,000 agreed-upon housing units has been a sticking point for MCB4.

Friends of the High Line, a nonprofit organization designed to protect the High Line Park in Manhattan, also registered strong opposition to the casino proposal since its towers would impede upon the park’s famed views.

Clamoring for a license

Wynn and the Related Companies are not the only casino bidders to have drawn opposition from local groups and communities—not even close.

The majority of casino bidders have had to or are still jumping through legal hoops to get their projects to “operation go” status ahead of the highly-anticipated decisions on licensing, expected to be announced near the end of the year.

Zoning issues and the use of public land have been a common sticking point for many of these projects. An example of that is the project headed by New York Mets owner Steve Cohen, who wants to build a Hard Rock-operated facility on space used for parking at Citi Field, home of the Mets.

“[Monday’s] ‘no’ vote creates a generational opportunity to say ‘yes’ to public-spirited development that creates jobs to build new housing and truly public open space, and protects the High Line,” said Alan Van Capelle, executive director of Friends of the High Line, in a statement after MCB4’s vote. “And I encourage Related to withdraw its application and join a community-led effort to start over – quickly – to reimagine the site for public good.”

New York, despite having the highest gaming tax rates of any state, is a highly-coveted destination for casino license suitors due to the state’s gambling activity and dense population centers.