Just Wynn, baby!
Related Firms revealed a revised plan – exclusively to The Post – for its proposed Hudson Yards casino mega-complex that rolls the dice on two gleaming skyscrapers after two top contenders seemingly crapped out.
Related CEO Jeff Blau said the proposed $10 billion development plan for the Yards’ entire western half can be kick-started by the three million-square-foot, Wynn-branded “resort” tower – which might also house a 1,700-room hotel to serve the struggling Javits Center — because the developer seeks to snag the dear gaming license.
“It would be one of the crucial incredible tall buildings in Latest York City,” Blau gushed Friday.
The table games like blackjack, craps, poker and roulette would take up 250,000 square feet in the brand new skyscraper – together with the high-end restaurants and shops that Blau hopes will attract each whales and guppies trying to try their luck on the far West Side.
Related plans to retain a previously announced 5.5-acre public green park connected to the High Line.Getty Images
Related CEO Jeff Blau said the casino could be the centerpiece of a 3 million-square-foot, Wynn-branded “resort” tower. Getty Images for Hudson River Park Friends
The chief also announced a surprise addition for the undeveloped 6.5-acre portion of Hudson Yards between eleventh and twelfth Aves. – a 2 million-square-foot office tower.
Related, led by founder Stephen M. Ross, plans to retain a previously announced 5.5-acre public green park connected to the High Line, a much-needed public school for the realm, and a 1-million square-foot rental apartment tower that can include 329 “inexpensive” units.
“For these reasons we feel we’re in an excellent position with the most effective proposal,” Blau said. “We’re trying to win.”
Blau’s probabilities for victory within the casino sweepstakes were boosted after projected frontrunner Steve Cohen’s proposal for a gambling and entertainment complex on state-owned land near Citi Field was shot down by a Queens politician last week.
Casino operator Bally’s also appears to be out of the running with its bid to put a gambling den on Donald Trump’s golf course within the Bronx due to a conflict with the town over leasing issues for the land.
Bally’s may make a last-ditch attempt for a casino in Cohen’s backyard with a proposal on private land at Willets Point.
Other major suitors who wish to put a casino in Coney Island, Times Square, atop Saks Fifth Avenue and near the United Nations also face stiff resistance from local officials.
Related may profit from founder Stephen M. Ross being certainly one of Gov. Hochul’s biggest donors.Getty Images
Blau’s important competition now appears to be coming from Long Island, where Sands’s bid to construct a casino on the Nassau Coliseum grounds gained local approval last week.
But its proximity to a skeptical Hofstra University could quash those plans.
“While there are still hurdles to beat, the overwhelming bipartisan approval of the lease transfer to the Sands puts Nassau County one step closer to opening up what can be certainly one of the best resorts, entertainment centers and casinos on this planet,” Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman told The Post on Sunday.
Related and partner Oxford Properties face its own political hurdles, namely from State Sen. Brad Hoylman, whose district covers Hudson Yards. Hoylman is an element of a six-member site review board that can vote on whether Related’s proposal moves forward for certainly one of the three downstate casino licenses. (Two are expected to go to the “racinos” at Aqueduct and in Yonkers.)
The others on the board are Gov. Kathy Hochul, Mayor Eric Adams, City Councilman Erik Bottcher, Assemblyman Tony Simone, and Manhattan Borough President Mark Levine.
Hoylman didn’t seem swayed by Blau’s vision after hearing concerning the revised details.
The Wynn-branded tower would house a 1,700-room hotel to serve the struggling Javits Center.Rick Davis / SplashNews.com
“It’s a steep hill to climb given the community was promised open space, a public school and inexpensive housing where the casino is proposed,” Hoylman told The Post on Friday, seemingly disregarding the previously-promised amenities.
Blau hopes his ace in the outlet – of bringing the Javits much-needed hotel rooms – will trump Hoylman’s objections and probable “No” vote.
Related may profit from Ross being certainly one of Hochul’s biggest donors.
“The Javits Center just expanded but continues to lose business to other cities since it doesn’t have a hotel,” said Blau, adding that Wynn is experienced at booking conventions and could possibly be a giant assist in luring events from other cities.
“Sooner or later a convention hotel must be near Javits and this is able to be it,” a source near the project said.
Blau also said the brand new office tower would buck the present difficulties facing the town’s industrial real estate market.
Related’s 4 office skyscrapers on the location’s eastern half are nearly full, Blau said.
He noted that 30 Hudson Yards is fully sold to corporations including KKR, while 10 and 55 Hudson Yards are 100% leased, and 50 Hudson Yards is already greater than 90% spoken for even before it’s finished.
Related’s 55 Hudson Yards is 100% leased.©2022 Francis Dzikowski/OTTO
“We could start constructing one other office tower at once,” Blau said. “We’re out of room” for tenants desirous to pay $200 a square foot for space.
Blau cited other aspects that ought to make Related the odds-on favorite, equivalent to access to the expanded No. 7 subway line and other mass transit, and the incontrovertible fact that no buildings or people could be disrupted since the western yard is empty.
The following round of the casino selection process will likely be in July when the suitors meet with the state, before making their final proposals in the autumn. The state’s Gaming Commission, controlled by Hochul, is predicted to announce the winners by the tip of the 12 months.
The three licenses will add $1.5 billion to the state’s cash-strapped budget.
