Yonkers Mayor, Mike Spano, called on the state of New York to award a license to MGM Empire City‘s casino bid, especially after Wynn Resorts withdrew its own.
The state is distributing three licenses for a downstate casino in New York. MGM Resorts has been in the mix since acquiring Empire City Casino in 2019.
Spano has longed for a casino in Yonkers, and has backed MGM’s bid since the beginning. He called it “potentially the most significant boost to our economy going forward.”
New York is slated to award the licenses in December. However, since MGM is ready to go now, Spano believes it’s a waste of time to wait. He told the Yonkers Times:
“We have two racinos whose owners are ready to pay the State a billion dollars in application fees today, and to start generating hundreds of millions of dollars in new taxes tomorrow.
“We all know that the cutbacks from Washington are going to cause holes in the State and local budgets by the end of the year, so let’s be proactive.”
Two more proposals back out
Related Companies and Wynn Resorts announced earlier this week that it has withdrawn its $12 million casino proposal in Hudson Yards. This comes on the heels of Las Vegas Sands (LVS) pulling the plug last month on redeveloping the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Uniondale.
Companies removing themselves from consideration is essentially the process of elimination. Spano’s argument is that MGM is ready to go, so why not move forward? Spano added:
“New York should move ahead right away with the two proposals that enjoy community support and are shovel ready to go. We’ve already lost too much time. Let’s not lose any more.”
Not only would MGM Empire City supply slots and table games, the proposal calls for several new restaurants, lounges and bars, constructing a 5,000-seat live entertainment venue and building a parking garage. In addition, a BetMGM Sportsbook & Lounge featuring a 112-foot wrap-around LED screen with stadium seating would be included.
MGM estimates the new entertainment area would generate more than $1 billion in new economic activity for the region.
