The bidding war for a NYC metro area casino license is heating up as the Hudson Yards West project received a green light from the City Planning Commission (CPC) on Wednesday, moving it one step closer to an approved reality.
Related Companies/Oxford Properties Group and Wynn Resorts, the developers and gaming gurus behind the project, said the commission “overwhelmingly voted” to support modifications required to revitalize the existing Western Railyards with a gaming resort, housing and green park space.
In its vote, the CPC approved modifying the application for zoning changes at the Western Rail Yards site, between 11th and 12th Avenues and 30th and 33rd Streets near the High Line, a public park.
The application is distinct from the more involved state approval process for gaming facility licenses.
“While this is a significant proposal before us this morning, the scope of what we’re actually voting on is much narrower,” CPC Chair Dan Garodnick said. “Our vote is on land use actions to allow for this site to compete with other regional applications for a gaming license, and in the alternative, to ensure a site plan that delivers for the public.”
‘$2.7 billion for the MTA’
Should the casino be built, the bigwigs in charge of the project said 1% of gross gaming revenue would be given to nearby community organizations, likely in Chelsea, Hell’s Kitchen, and the West Side of Manhattan. They also said transit services would benefit from a full-service casino in the neighborhood.
As the state-run MTA faces several financial challenges, including a $68.4 billion capital plan that is still waiting for approval and the fate of congestion pricing still in the hands of federal court, casino bidders said gaming revenue can help support expensive transportation enhancement projects.
“The development is also projected to generate $2.7 billion in revenue for the MTA, providing a much-needed boost for public transit at a time of fiscal uncertainty,” a spokesperson for the project said.
Hudson Yards West organizers said the project is projected to pay the MTA a multi-million dollar amount through rental payments, dedicated sales taxes, and other revenue streams as a “direct result of construction on the MTA’s rail yard property.”
In the meantime, Jeff Blau, CEO of Related Companies, cited other potential benefits that could spring from Hudson Yards West.
“Today marks a critical milestone for Hudson Yards West,” he said. “Thanks to the collaborative process with City Planning, we are closer than ever to delivering on this historic investment in our community, which will create thousands of new union jobs, thousands of units of new housing, a huge new public green space park and nearly $200 million of community benefits.”
While the CPC vote was a victory for the developers, not all New Yorkers support a West Side casino.
Protect the High Line, a nonprofit organization that wants the city to stick with an original 2009 development plan that does not include a casino and has more open space, commented on the vote.
“The community has spoken. It’s time for Related to do the right thing—drop this flawed proposal and work with the community to develop a plan that actually serves the people who live and work here,” Alan van Capelle, executive director of Friends of the High Line, said.
