There are just three contenders left for up to three available gaming licenses.
NEW YORK — And then there were three.
MGM Empire City pulled its application Tuesday to expand its Yonkers horse racing track into a full-fledged casino — a surprise move that further narrows the field of candidates vying for up to three New York City-area gaming licenses.
“Today, MGM Resorts made the difficult decision to withdraw its application for a commercial casino license in Yonkers, New York,” the company wrote in a statement. “Since submitting our application in June, the competitive and economic assumptions underpinning our application have shifted, altering our return expectations on the proposed $2.3 billion investment.”
Just three bids are now in the running, down from nearly a dozen proposals once in the mix. And there are enough licenses for all three — if the state elects to award them. The state Gaming Facility Location Board is slated to make its decision by Dec. 1.
The three surviving bids include a proposal from billionaire Mets owner Steve Cohen to build a gaming complex next to Citi Field; a plan from Bally’s to construct a casino on the site of the former Trump golf course in the Bronx; and a pitch from Resorts World to expand its “racino” in southeast Queens.
Yonkers Mayor Mike Spano called on Gov. Kathy Hochul to launch an “independent investigation” into the licensing process, saying MGM’s reasons for its reversal “don’t add up.” He raised the specter that the process could have been “tainted or manipulated” since Bally’s would have to pay $115 million to the Trump Organization under the terms of its purchase agreement for the Bronx site.
“It’s no secret that the big winner for this reversal will be Bally’s proposal for a casino at the former Trump Links,” Spano said in a statement. “It’s also no secret that Bally’s has a deal with Donald Trump that they will pay the Trump organization an additional $115 million if they can open a casino there.”
He continued, “People need to be assured that there is no linkage between MGM’s decision and the massive financial benefit to Donald Trump.”
In the statement Tuesday, MGM said a “newly defined competitive landscape — with four proposals clustered in a small geographic area — challenges the returns we initially anticipated from this project.” And, the firm’s plan to expand Empire City was based on receiving a 30-year casino license, the company said, but newly issued guidance from the state indicates it would only receive a 15-year license.
“Taken together, these events result in a proposition that no longer aligns with our commitment to capital stewardship,” the statement continued.
Four other casino proposals that submitted applications to the board in June — including three in Manhattan — were shot down by local boards last month.
The four remaining bidders were required to submit supplemental application materials to the gaming board Tuesday, including a proposed tax rate for their facilities.
The winning firms must cough up at least $500 million for the license itself, but at least one of the bidders is offering more. Resorts World is pledging $600 million; Cohen is offering $500 million. Bally’s did not specify a proposed license fee in its supplemental executive summary.