gambling sector - the largest untapped market in the largest metropolitan area in the nation, with a population of 20 million people and a steady stream of tourists.įor decades, New York has watched its residents travel to Atlantic City, N.J., or to Native American casinos in eastern Connecticut to gamble, losing out on the tax revenue that would come from gamblers staying closer to home.īut that may soon change - and labor unions, real-estate firms and casino giants are eager to go all-in on building out the city’s gambling potential. It is hoping to become a full-scale casino with live table games and slot machines.Ī New York City casino is considered a crown jewel of the U.S. 3, 2014, file photo, visitors to the Resorts World Casino at the Aqueduct racetrack play electronic baccarat games, in the Queens borough of New York. “Empire City Casino by MGM Resorts is ready to roar.” A Manhattan casino? Maybe “We are ready to deliver thousands of new jobs for Westchester and the Bronx while generating $1 billion in new economic activity with a full gaming license,” MGM said in a statement.

Both are horse racetracks with video-lottery terminals and are already among the largest gaming operations in the nation now they want to become full-scale casinos with table games and slot machines and win two of the three licenses. They include the Resorts World New York City in Queens, owned by Malaysian conglomerate Genting Group, and the MGM-owned Empire City Casino in Yonkers, just north of the Bronx. The operators submitted preliminary details in December to the state Gaming Commission on their plans for New York City-area casinos. who grew up in Queens, said in an interview. Gaming has a proven potential to be an anchor in that recovery,” Soo Kim, chair of the Bally’s Corp. Some are even making the pitch that a new gaming hall could help the nation’s most populous city repair its pandemic-scarred economy.

And already nine gambling giants are eager to bid on the contracts and are likely to offer grandiose plans for casinos, hotels and entertainment venues to boost their proposals. Kathy Hochul wants to end that moratorium this year, allowing up to three casinos to open downstate. New York state has a ban on new casinos until 2023, but Gov.

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