There is no doubt that the ongoing global pandemic has affected many industries causing budget shortfalls. In early April, Governor Andrew M. Cuomo announced the 2022 enacted budget set to renew the Empire State. It features a $311 billion Infrastructure plan, the most expensive one in New York's history. However, according to reports, officials are still scrambling to locate extra revenue streams, as in February, news broke that the Governor has a $15 billion budget gap to fill.

Given that the state plans to raise corporate taxes and those of its most affluent residents, real estate developers are now looking to take advantage of this situation by reviving the idea of a casino in New York City. It is not a novel proposal as the concept of a gaming establishment in the tourist-rich sections of Manhattan has been kicked around for decades. Democratic State Senate member Joseph Addabbo believes that only licensing such a venue could raise over $500 million. Nevertheless, he concedes that most city lawmakers are firmly against this idea.

Tribal casinos have been active in the state since 1993, and commercial ones appeared in 2013 with the passing of the Upstate New York Gaming Economic Development Act. Now, the pandemic-fueled recession has sparked lawmakers to push up the issuing of three gaming licenses reserved for downstate New York in 2021 instead of in 2023, as incipiently penciled. Online casinos are an option in the meantime.

TSX Broadway

Founded in 2000 by Robert Lapidus and David Levinson, L&L Holding is a privately-owned company with a portfolio consisting of 10 million square feet of commercial space in NYC. Its motto is that vertical integration is key to maximizing value.

L&L Holding is proposing that a Manhattan casino should find a home at 1568 Broadway in Times Square. Partnered with Maefield Development and the Fortress Investment Group, the trio is developing a 46-story, 470-foot-tall hotel tower on that location. Their project entails the partial demolition of DoubleTree Suites for their building named TSX Broadway. It is a 550,000 square-foot venue that will open with a retail space of 75,000-square-feet and a 669-key hotel.

Per rumors, L&L Holding started fiddling with the idea of incorporating a casino inside TSX Broadway after the pandemic began. The company has since been in talks with multiple Sin City operators, including the Las Vegas Sands regarding said possibility. TSX Broadway is a $2.5B mixed-use project that has a 2024 completion date.

Herald Square

Established in 1982 in Maryland, Vornado Realty is a real estate investment trust that pulls in annual revenues of $1.5 billion. It mainly focuses on investing in street retail and office buildings in the Manhattan area. Some of their notable properties include the New York Marriott Marquis, Crowne Plaza Hotel, Rego Center, the Fuller Building, and One Penn Plaza.

Vornado Realty Trust is suggesting the construction of a premium gaming locale somewhere in Herald Square. For the uninformed, the square is a massively commercial intersection in Midtown Manhattan. It is where 34th Street and Broadway’s Sixth Avenue intersect. The first is a retail hub, and the latter also gets more than decent foot traffic.

The New York Times reports that Morris Bailey’s JEMB Realty Corporation also has its sights set on this area. Bailey owns Atlantic City’s Resorts Casino Hotel, and he wants to kick off his NY gambling adventure by building a casino inside the former McAlpin Hotel, his Herald Square property. The McAlpin Hotel began operating as a hospitality venue in 1912 but is now an apartment building known as Herald Towers.

New York Hilton Midtown

One of the more obvious choices for a Manhattan casino that most laypeople suggest is the New York Hilton Midtown. It is the world’s 101st tallest hotel (47-floors) and the largest one in the city. It is also the largest Hilton in the continental US.

Opened in 1963, it is the brainchild of architect William B. Tabler. Three companies participated in its development, the Rockefeller Group, the Uris Buildings Corporation, and the Hilton Hotels Corporation.

Located at 1335 Avenue of the Americas, this spot boasts 1,929 rooms and over 150,000-square-feet of meeting space. The latter could easily get converted to a gaming floor. Top Las Vegas casinos like the Bellagio and the MGM Grand have gambling areas of identical size.

To Sum Up

The idea of a Manhattan casino is fun, but it is more a dream at this point. Developers believe that politicians see this area as a no-fly zone. In their eyes, even Nassau and Westchester will be politically challenging. However, they still expect at least one NYC license to get approved soon. Out of the three locations above, TSX Broadway seems like the most likely possibility. Though, few are holding their breaths for a Manhattan license. 

About the Author

Shelly Schiff has been working in the gambling industry since 2009, mainly on the digital side of things, employed by OnlineUnitedStatesCasinos.com. However, over her eleven-year career, Shelly has provided content for many other top interactive gaming websites. She knows all there is to know about slots and has in-depth knowledge of the most popular table games. Her golden retriever Garry occupies most of her leisure time. Though, when she can, she loves reading Jim Thompson-like crime novels.