Queens just got dealt a winning hand.
The state Gaming Facility Location Board has greenlit all three remaining applicants for full-scale downstate casino licenses: Resorts World New York City in South Ozone Park, Hard Rock Metropolitan Park at Citi Field and Bally’s Bronx, just over the Whitestone Bridge.
“The board has determined that awarding all three licenses best advances the state’s long-term economic, fiscal and community objectives,” said Chair Vicki Been at the board’s Dec. 1 meeting at the CUNY Graduate Center in Manhattan.
The three applicants will get licenses pending final approval by the state Gaming Commission by Dec. 31.
At a press conference following the meeting, Been said approval is “not a rubber stamp” and that the Gaming Commission will still conduct a thorough review before its final decision.
The licensees each will have to pay the state a $500 million fee, as well as pledge $500 million in capital investment.
RWNYC’s proposed expansion, at its existing facility at 110-00 Rockaway Blvd., includes a $5.5 billion physical investment in the 72-acre Aqueduct site, adding a 500,000-square-foot gaming floor; 2,000 hotel rooms; a 7,000-seat multipurpose entertainment venue; more than 7,000 parking spaces, a majority of which will be covered; and more than 12 acres of new public green space. Resorts World plans to start offering live table games as soon as March 30, 2026.
For the first phase of the casino, expected to open toward the end of March next year, RWNYC will immediately begin hiring and training up to 2,000 employees, it said in a press release. RWNYC’s proposed $2 billion community benefits package also includes a commitment to build up to 50,000 units of workforce housing across the city; the Resorts World Innovation Campus, featuring a sports and media complex shaped by Queens native and former NBA star Kenny “The Jet” Smith; a community investment fund; and a $100 million infrastructure improvement package.
“Resorts World New York City’s journey to this historic moment represents more than 15 years of work to generate jobs, revenue, and opportunities for our neighbors,” said Robert DeSalvio, President of Genting Americas East, the parent company of RWNYC.
DeSalvio continued, “Resorts World New York City’s $7.5 billion proposal is the only bid that can expand operations in just 90 days, generating billions in new revenue for mass transit and public education over the next four years. We are thankful the Gaming Facility Location Board recognized the tremendous economic impact we will have for New York State.”
Metropolitan Park, a proposed $8.1 billion investment and partnership between New York Mets owner Steve Cohen and Hard Rock International, would transform 50 acres of Citi Field parking lots into a sports and entertainment destination. The project features a Hard Rock Hotel with a casino, sportsbook, restaurants, bars and state-of-the art live music venue as well as a Taste of Queens Food Hall.
Metropolitan Park would create 25 acres of public green space, generate 23,000 union jobs and deliver more than $1 billion in community benefits, including new infrastructure improvements and a completely revamped, ADA-accessible 7-line train station.
“After years of community engagement and support, Metropolitan Park is one step closer to becoming a reality,” said project spokesperson Karl Rickett in a statement. “Following a fair, transparent and rigorous process, The Gaming Facility Location Board has validated the positive economic impact this project will have with billions of dollars in tax revenue, 23,000 union jobs, and over $1 billion in community benefits. We look forward to the Gaming Commission’s review.”
“There is no safer bet in our city than Queens and its unparalleled promise. The most diverse county in the United States is quickly becoming its most economically innovative and transformative — cemented by today’s recommendation to connect tens of thousands of Queens families to good-paying union jobs and millions of residents and tourists alike to world-class entertainment,” said Borough President Donovan Richards in a statement.
“Since the very start of this casino licensing process, both Resorts World and Metropolitan Park have held winning hands, with each putting forth unrivaled community benefits packages to uplift our families and clear-eyed workforce development plans that will generate billions of dollars in wages and tax revenue. Together, they embody our borough’s unrivaled potential as a true live, work and play community.”
He said he is glad to have supported both projects, and added, “There is no doubt that Queens is truly the future.”
State Sen. John Liu (D-Bayside) said, “Today’s meeting of the state’s Gaming Facility Location Board caps off a 13-year process which began with New York’s voters approving a constitutional amendment authorizing 4 upstate and 3 downstate casinos. No doubt voters understood the harms caused by gambling and casinos, like harms caused by other state-licensed activities. Ultimately, the decisions in the voter referendum back then through today’s meeting weighed costs versus benefits, specifically those of casinos and gambling versus mass transit, public schools, well-paying jobs, and parks and other infrastructure.”
Across the East River, as part of the Trump Organization’s sale of its remaining interest in the site to Bally’s, formerly Trump Links golf course, the casino company promised to pay the Trump Organization $115 million should it win a casino license, according to The New York Times.
Gov. Hochul said in a statement, “From the moment that three downstate casino licenses were authorized in the 2022 State Budget, I have been clear: any approved project must provide real benefits to its community and have sustainable economic plans. I am grateful to Chair Been and the Gaming Facility Location Board for their careful review of the applications according to these high standards.”
She continued, “The three projects approved today promise to unlock billions in funding for the MTA and create tens of thousands of jobs. It is critical that they keep those promises. I look forward to the Gaming Commission’s review of the Board’s recommendations in the weeks ahead.”
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