Bally’s CAC Holds First Public Hearing For Proposed Bronx Casino

The Community Advisory Committee (CAC) assigned to gauge public sentiment for Bally’s proposed $4 billion casino in the Ferry Point section of the Bronx in New York held the first of its two mandated public hearings Monday night. And a majority of the approximately 50 speakers who came to 1200 Waters Place spoke in support of the bid.

Many cited the potential of thousands of union-based jobs and viewed the casino as a much-needed economic lifeline to the area.

Some opponents expressed a sense of being bulldozed by government levels above the community board, while others saw environmental red flags.

Bally’s made its informational pitch to the CAC on Aug. 11, pledging a fully unionized labor force that would include 15,000 construction positions and 4,000 gaming positions. It also pledged $75 million in transportation upgrades to the Ferry Point area and a “nine-figure investment” to upgrade existing parklands.

Bally’s, which is also building a $2 billion casino in downtown Chicago slated to open in September 2026, is considered a longshot among the eight applicants to be awarded one of the three $500 million downstate casino licenses from the New York State Gaming Committee.

Civic contributions make an impact

Perhaps the oddest juxtaposition of a community discussing the merits of a casino among any of the eight applicants to date came Tuesday night. Teenagers and incoming Preston High School students Michelle Christopher and Sarah Colado spoke in support of the project.

A Catholic school run by Sisters of the Divine Compassion, Preston had been scheduled for closure at the end of the school year due to financial pressures and declining enrollment until the philanthropic arm of the Bally’s Corporation purchased the property for $8.5 million in April.

“Thanks to the efforts of the community and the critical support of the Bally’s Foundation, our school was saved,” Christopher said. “I can’t describe how relieved and excited I was. It meant that I could still follow my dream and attend a school that means so much to me and so many others.”

“I’m grateful for Bally’s foundation for saving our school,” added Colado, “Preston was my first choice for academics. … I’m a first generation Dominican-American and I fully understand what this opportunity means to me.”

Multiple non-profit organizations backed the proposed casino, including multiple Little League programs seeking a revitalization of the parklands.

An opportunity that can’t be missed?

More than one resident talked about Bally’s being an opportunity that the Bronx cannot afford to miss out on after other near-misses with large companies that had considered the borough for various projects. William Bonaparte, who does community outreach with teenagers and young adults, said the project is offering hope.

“They’re looking at this like the way they were when Bay Plaza was built, when they thought Amazon was going to come on, even the way when Target was built,” Bonaparte said. “It’s giving them something to look forward to, it’s giving the community a chance and people a chance to make honest wagers and honest livings.

“If the younger generation or the next generation doesn’t have anything to do or any other way to make money, if we don’t have stuff like this in the Bronx, what are they going to do?”

That was a sentiment among many longtime residents speaking in support of the proposal, that Bally’s will bring jobs and an economic boost to the area.

“What would it bring to the community? It would bring jobs,” said Howard Burkhardt, who said his house was the first on Miles Avenue and he’s been a resident for 81 years. “It would be a place where people can sit down and relax and bring investment that you can enjoy when somebody comes here. … We need this opportunity and you got a one-shot deal now to do this.”

Opponents have multiple concerns

Some of those who spoke in opposition to Bally’s proposal were spirited. The first speaker of the evening, Robert Press, expressed his belief there was borough-wide collusion among Bronx Democrats and New York City Mayor Eric Adams, who twice threw lifelines to the Bally’s proposal to make sure it could take all the steps in the process after submitting its application.

“I smell not only a fix, but collusion among the mayor, the Bronx Democratic Party, the state assemblyman, [and] the state senator,” Press railed. “That needs to be investigated, and it needs to be investigated now.”

David Abreu, speaking on behalf of environmental group Save the Sound, expressed concerned about the additional wastewater and storm water the project would create as well as the impact on air quality based on Bally’s estimate it would require 5 million vehicles of the 40 million that utilize the Throgs Neck and the Whitestone thoroughfares to help reach its projected revenue goal of $1 billion annually.