Tuesday was another jam-packed day in the downstate New York casino process, as one chapter ended while another began.
The day started with the approval of Metropolitan Park by its community advisory committee (CAC), the last CAC vote to be held out of eight total. Thus, it joined Bally’s Bronx, MGM Empire City and Resorts World NYC as the final contenders for three available downstate licences. Four other applicants were rejected by their local committees.
The four that received approval will now go before the state’s Gaming Facility Location Board (GFLB), which also saw activity on Tuesday. That afternoon, the New York State Gaming Commission voted unanimously to appoint Cindy Estrada as a fifth and final member of the board.
Estrada was present during discussion of the appointment, which lasted only a few minutes. Prior to holding the vote, commission Chairman Brian O’Dwyer didn’t exactly make the new appointee’s job sound easy.
“She’s indicated her desire to accept this task,” he said, referencing Estrada. “I have told her that it is truly a Herculean task to be doing that. After I got through with her, there were no false illusions about the amount of work there will be.”
O’Dwyer didn’t add much to that in a commission press release, saying that the board’s work “has far-reaching implications for the entire state and I am grateful for their service”. The board itself did not announce Estrada’s appointment, but confirmed the four casino applicants it will consider.
Who is the latest appointee to the GFLB?
According to the biography listed for Estrada, she is from Harlem but was raised in Bayamon, Puerto Rico. She has served as executive director of the New York City Hispanic Chamber of Commerce since 2015. In the years prior, she was an entrepreneur in the fashion industry and an executive in the travel sector.
Estrada’s bio also lists her as a “longtime resident of the Bronx”, the only such reference for any of the GFLB members. Bally’s Bronx is the lone contender from that borough, with Resorts World and Metropolitan Park lying in Queens and MGM in Yonkers. She is not quoted in the announcement, but said at the hearing she “really appreciate[s] the opportunity”.
With the latest appointment, the full board is as follows:
- Vicki Been, Chair: NYU law professor
- Terryl Brown: VP and general counsel, St. John’s University
- Cindy Estrada: Executive director, NYC Hispanic Chamber of Commerce
- Marion Phillips III: SVP, community development and DEI, US News and World Report
- Greg Reimers: Retired real estate finance executive
According to the board’s website, members must have at least 10 years’ experience “in specific fiscal matters”, as well as “significant expertise” in accounting, real estate and economics. Conversely, they are barred from having any relationships with bidders or financial interests “in any gaming activities”.
There are no forthcoming board meetings scheduled as of writing.
More work to do in the months ahead
The casino licence review process will now essentially start anew for the four candidates. With the landscape further established than it was previously, much of the financial projections and other project details will need to be updated. A source involved in the process indicated to iGB, on condition of anonymity, that projections are currently being revised.
These supplemental materials, which include proposed tax rates, are due by 15 October. Bidders are free to pitch their own rates, as long as they start at 25% for slots and 10% for other gaming.
However, the two racinos – MGM and Resorts World – currently face a tax rate of about 55%. MGM CEO Bill Hornbuckle said at a recent banking conference his understanding was that his property would be expected to at least match that rate, in addition to continuing its horse racing commitments. The New York State Gaming Commission did not immediately respond to a request for clarification on this point.
In addition to the updated projections, the GFLB will consider four weighted aspects of each bid:
- Economic activity (70%)
- Local impact siting (10%)
- Workforce enhancement (10%)
- Diversity (10%)
The GFLB’s recommendations for licensure will be presented to the Gaming Commission by 1 December. The commission will then issue up to three licences by 31 December. This timeline “ensures that New York State will collect the already-booked casino licence fee(s) ahead of schedule”, per the GFLB site.
Those fees are $500 million each, meaning the state could cash in on up to $1.5 billion in immediate income. New York state currently faces a cumulative budget deficit of $34.3 billion through fiscal year 2029.
Cindy Estrada was named to New York’s Gaming Facility Location Board at the same time that the fourth and final bidder was approved for consideration.