Gambling green at links
Bally’s wants to build casino by Trump golf course in Bronx
The Bally’s casino chain said Monday that it is working on a bid to build a casino in the Bronx, joining the crowded competition for three coveted casino licenses in the New York City area.
The proposal is built on a December deal between Bally’s and the Trump Organization that would transfer 17 acres of city-owned land from the Trump Golf Links at Ferry Point into the hands of the casino chain, Bally’s said.
Ferry Point is located near the far-eastern reaches of the Bronx, across the Whitestone Bridge from northern Queens.
In a statement, Bally’s said it has begun an “ongoing series of conversations with local elected officials, community groups and key civic leaders,” soliciting input on the potential project.
“At Bally’s, we start with the proposition that the leaders in the community know what is best for their community,” Bally’s said in the statement.
The Rhode Island-based gambling giant, which operates 15 casinos in 10 states, said its blueprint would also produce new green space.
The casino would cover 10 of 17 acres reserved for the project, with the rest of the plot potentially hosting greenery and workforce housing, according to Bally’s.
The local councilwoman, Marjorie Velazquez, suggested she sees promise in the proposal.
“We need more public green space in the Bronx, we need housing and jobs,” Velazquez, a Democrat, said in a statement. “Any project I would consider would need to offer a tangible benefit to my community, particularly local hiring.”
Vanessa Gibson, the Bronx borough president, said Monday that she was recently made aware of the bid and awaits more details. “Casino gambling is an important conversation to have,” Gibson said in a statement.
The 192-acre Trump Golf Links at Ferry Point, which cost $127 million to build, opened in 2014.
In 2021, former Mayor Bill de Blasio’s administration moved to terminate the Trump Organization’s contract for the golf course, citing former President Donald Trump’s role in inciting the Jan. 6 Capitol attack. But a New York judge ruled last year that the city could not cancel the contract.
The Trump Organization did not respond Monday to a request for comment on the casino bid.
A growing collection of casino operators and developers have joined the free-for-all sweepstakes for the New York City-area casino licenses.
Last month, New York State launched the bidding process for the licenses. Two downstate licenses appear likely to go to existing so-called racinos — Resorts World Casino in Queens and Empire City Casino in Yonkers — intensifying the competition.
Mohegan and the Soloviev Building Company are pushing a plan to build an audacious casino complex capped by a riverside Ferris wheel near the UN building in Midtown Manhattan.
Caesars and SL Green Realty have proposed putting a casino on multiple levels in a 54-floor skyscraper in Times Square.
Saks Fifth Avenue’s owners are plotting a bid to open a high-end casino on the top floors of their department store at 611 Fifth Ave. in Midtown.
On the western side of Midtown, Vornado Realty Trust is putting together a plan to put a casino at the site of the Hotel Pennsylvania, and Related Companies and Wynn Resorts are exploring designs for a casino at Hudson Yards.
Manhattan and the Bronx are not the only places where developers are drawing up casino bids.
Thor Equities has teamed up with Saratoga Casino Holdings, the Chickasaw Nation and Legends to push for a casino at Coney Island in Brooklyn.
And Las Vegas Sands has set its sights on building a casino at the site of the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum, the former home of the New York Islanders. The plot sits about 20 miles from Midtown Manhattan.