Manhattan won’t be getting a commercial casino anytime soon, after the third and final pitch failed to get sufficient local support. The Freedom Plaza proposal, headed up by the Mohegan Tribe, the Banyan Group, and the Soloviev Group, was on the wrong side of a 4-2 vote on Monday by the community advisory committee (CAC) on the East Side.
The plan was to build more than 1,000 apartments, a 4.7-acre park, and a 300,000-square-foot underground casino. Some of the reasons people opposed the plan were concerns over increased traffic, public safety, and other possible negative impacts on the quality of life for locals.
every proposal needs to get approval from their respective CAC
The Jay-Z-backed Times Square casino and The Avenir in Hudson Yards both lost their own votes last week. That means just five proposals remain in contention for three downstate licenses that will be handed out before the end of 2025. Every proposal needs to get approval from their respective CAC before the New York State Gaming Commission (NYSGC) can consider their applications.
Two of the remaining candidates are the existing slot parlor locations, MGM Empire City in Yonkers and Resorts World New York City in Queens at the Aqueduct Racetrack. Then there’s the Bally’s Bronx, the Coney in Brooklyn, and Steve Cohen’s planned project beside Citi Field in Queens.
