The Avenir Makes Its Casino Pitch To West Side NYC Residents

The Avenir, fronted by Silverstein Properties and Rush Street Gaming, pitched its $7 billion proposed casino to residents on the West Side of Manhattan on Wednesday to a largely receptive audience.

More than 100 speakers took time throughout a five-hour public hearing held at the Javits Center to make their opinions known. The Avenir is one of three Manhattan-based proposals among the eight overall vying for the three $500 million downstate casino licenses that could be awarded by the New York State Gaming Commission.

Caesars Palace Times Square held its first hearing Aug. 13, while Freedom Plaza, whose casino is part of an overall $11.1 billion proposal on the East Side of the city, is scheduled to hold its first hearing Thursday.

A few blocks away, but worlds apart

Wednesday’s hearing elicited some impassioned opinions, but there was hardly any of the rancor seen a fortnight ago during the Caesars Palace Times Square hearing.

Caesars’ proposed location of 1515 Broadway is merely blocks away from where the Avenir would be located, but Wednesday’s hearing appeared to create a geographical fault line along 42nd Street. Multiple residents at Manhattan Plaza along 9th and 10th Avenues were among those with Hell’s Kitchen-based zip codes who spoke in opposition.

“They can build housing, so why do they need a casino to do it?” Laura Napoli rhetorically asked. “The thing that upsets me the most in the pushing through of this casino is that this is my neighborhood, and lately a lot of elected officials don’t care about what their constituents say, what their residents want, and I ask those of you that have the power to protect their residents.

“Don’t just be an elected official, be a public servant. A public servant that listens to what your residents [and] what the public wants, not people that come from other zip codes to say yes to something in an area they don’t live in.”

Residents living in Silverstein Properties-run buildings — River Place and Silver Towers located on 11th and 12th Avenues — were among proponents of the project who noted the developer’s long-standing ties to projects throughout New York City while being solid community partners.

“Over the years, I’ve come to value and truly cherish what I call the ‘Silverstein Signature,'” said one resident from the 10036 zip code, “and that, in my experience, comprises of three core values: operational excellence, treating tenants like their family, and creating a safe and friendly community.

“I sincerely do believe that the Silverstein family will apply these three core values to the Avenir project.”

More union and civic backing

Silverstein Properties’ decades-long build-up throughout the city, most notably in lower Manhattan post 9/11, brought multiple speakers with union ties to the Javits Center backing The Avenir. That continued the process-wide trend of heavy union support for these proposed venues, all of which are pledging thousands of construction jobs as well as potentially thousands of casino positions.

Rush Street Gaming, which has a New York connection operating Rivers Casino in Schenectady, did its part by shuttling staffers more than 150 miles to Manhattan to detail their career path growth at the venue. Civic groups including Rethink Food, Covenant House, and Women In Need also stepped forward to publicly back The Avenir.

“When we heard there was going to be a casino project, we reached out to all of the providers, everybody who had a proposal, and not a single one responded to our email,” said Rethink Food founder and CEO Matt Jozwiak. “[The Avenir] came to us and said, ‘We’re concerned about excess food, we’re concerned about sustainability, we’re concerned about affordability, we want to partner with Rethink Food to make as many meals for low-income New Yorkers as possible.

“… And I think when we’re looking for a casino operator, we should be looking for the one that we trust, that cares about this city, that has done great things for this city. And that is why I’m staunchly in favor of The Avenir.”

Could subway alleviate traffic concerns?

The project leaders spend the first hour of the public hearing making a top-line presentation of The Avenir. Lisa Silverstein, the Properties’ vice chair and CEO, said bringing the casino to the West Side would raise the possibility of the MTA again considering a subway stop. There are existing tracks beneath 10th Avenue and 41st Street.

New York City Councilmember Erik Bottcher, who attended Wednesday’s hearing, had been a proponent of such a subway expansion. That proposal was scuttled by the MTA in October 2023, which cited high costs that exceeded the potential benefits.

Traffic concerns were at the forefront of those speaking in opposition to The Avenir. Environmental consultant Connor Lacefield tried to allay those concerns during the presentation, expressing hope that the casino would draw 80% of transportation to the location via subway, busing, and pedestrian traffic.

The Avenir did propose 24-hour shuttle service from Penn Station, Grand Central Terminal, and Hudson Yards, which it estimated could handle 8,000 riders daily. Lacefield said the increased traffic generated by The Avenir would amount to roughly 2%, but that increase would be spread throughout the day.