A casino won’t be coming to Coney Island after the local community advisory committee (CAC) voted 4-2 against the project on Monday. The proposal led by real estate firm Thor Equities planned to spend $3.4bn to create the resort in Brooklyn alongside its partners, Chickasaw Nation, Legends Hospitality company, and Saratoga Casino Holdings.
result could have been different if they had brought those initiatives to the table earlier
They tried to add some extra incentives earlier this month to sweeten the deal, such as increasing the community trust fund from $200m to $300m and raising the public safety fund to $100m from $15m. Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso, who was one of the committee members, remarked that the result could have been different if they had brought those initiatives to the table earlier.
City Councilman Justin Brannan, another of the no voters, explained that locals “overwhelmingly” didn’t want the project to proceed.
Monday afternoon’s decision means the Citi Field casino proposal will be the final one to go before a CAC vote, which it will do on Tuesday. Steve Cohen is hoping to join Bally’s, MGM Empire City, and Resorts World New York City as one of the applicants who make it to the New York State Gaming Commission (NYSGC) for final approval.
The expectation is that the gaming regulator will choose the licensees before the end of 2025. Industry stakeholders hope that online casino legalization can take center stage in 2026 once the land-based licenses are all issued.
