New York regulators receive 17 bids for casino licences



Gambling operators and real-estate developers submitted a total of 17 bids on Monday to obtain a casino licence in the US state of New York.

Gambling operators and real-estate developers submitted a total of 17 bids on Monday to obtain a casino licence in the US state of New York.

According to the Wall Street Journal newspaper, the confirmation of final bids comes after a total of 22 application fees were submitted in April with some groups paying fees towards more than one project.
Since the initial applications were received, five proposals have been abandoned.

The 17 companies are competing for just four casino licences in three regions; Catskills and Hudson Valley, an area around Albany, and a strip that runs from Binghamton northwest to Lake Ontario.

Regulators have placed a limit of just two casinos per region.

Amongst the companies vying for a licence is Empire Resorts, which submitted a joint bid of $1 billion (€730.4 million) with real-estate investment trust EPR Properties for a casino on the site of the old Concord Hotel resort in Catskills.

The pair had previously said that the planned project would be in the range of $750 million.

Elsewhere, Caesars Entertainment has also increased its bid to $880 million for a site in Orange County, despite having initially committed to a $750 million proposal.

Caesars will face competition from Penn National and Cordish Companies, which also have plans for a $750 million casino in the region.

In addition, Saratoga Casino and Raceway said it has signed a deal with casino operator Rush Street Gaming for a proposed casino resort in Newburgh.

In the Catskills region, the Mohegan Tribal Gaming Authority has teamed up with developer Louis Cappelli to propose a $550 million resort casino in Thompson, Sullivan County.

Claremont Partners has also put forward a proposal for a $640 million casino in Ellenville.

Further upstate, Hard Rock International has submitted a proposal for a $300 million Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Rensselaer near Albany.

Bidders will now give oral presentation on or after July 21 to the state's Gaming Facility Location Board, whose members are appointed by the New York State Gaming Commission.

The Location Board will review submissions before announcing the winners this autumn.

This is a reprint from igamingbusiness.com. to view the original, click here.


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