Bally’s Offers Responses To Proposed CAC Amendments

Bally’s, one of five remaining applicants for up to three downstate New York casino licenses, has submitted responses to amendments offered by its Community Advisory Committee (CAC).

The proposed $4 billion venue for Ferry Point has seen the competition of peer proposals largely cleared as all three Manhattan-based pitches — Freedom Plaza, Caesars Palace Times Square, and The Avenir — failed to move forward. A fourth, The Coney, is all but rejected as four members of its CAC have publicly signaled their intentions to vote down the proposal.

Bally’s weathered more of its controversy from the project in the run-up to the two mandated CAC public hearings as New York City Mayor Eric Adams twice threw lifelines to the proposal to get it to this point. That included his veto of a downvote for parkland alienation led by New York City Councilwoman Kristy Marmorato.

Marmorato clashed with state Assemblymembers Amanda Septimo and Yudelka Tapia at the second hearing Sept. 9, voicing her reasons for opposing Bally’s before the two assemblymembers offered public backing.

Technical responses

Bally’s responses to the proposed amendments were somewhat technical in nature as some amendments ran into legally defined limits.

For example, one amendment looking to have the Community Benefit Fund Board also serve as the governing board for any Bally’s Bronx Conservancy or Trust did not appear feasible. Bally’s noted it does “not have ownership, control, or any decision-making authority over any non-licensed areas of the Ferry Point premises and thus cannot establish a Conservancy or Trust for the management of parkland by which we do not have any right to, or control over.”

It did reject an amendment calling for a minimum of $17.5 million or 1% of gross gaming revenue (GGR) to be contributed at the time of licensure as opposed to when the casino would be opened.

Bally’s remained committed to $12.5 million or 1% of GGR at the time of opening but also pointed out it was providing an additional $12 million in annual benefits through the Community Benefits Agreement (CBA) and increasing its “public safety component” commitment from $3 million to $5 million. Those additions resulted in $27.5 million in “on-going, annual support upon the opening of the project.”

Other points of interest via Q-and-A

Separate from Bally’s responses to the proposed amendments came answers to questions submitted Sept. 12.

Bally’s said it had targeted 70% of its employees being from the Bronx, noting its hiring strategy “prioritizes the Bronx community.” In turn, that would raise its percentage of New York state-based workers “well north of 70%.”

Notably, Bally’s did not say it had a peace labor agreement in place but rather established a “neutrality agreement with the New York Hotel and Gaming Trades Council, AFL-CIO” earlier this year.

It included $3 million into the CBA for shuttle services and the Soundview ferry route but noted it does not have control of the ferry itself. Bally’s is also looking to expand the shuttle service beyond its current 10 stops to include ones within Ferry Point Park and at its site, and it has entered talks with the MTA to expand bus service routes.