Coney Island Residents Oppose the Opening of a Casino
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A resort with a luxury casino is proposed to be built on the sandy entertainment strip in Brooklyn. However, the residents of Coney Island are skeptical about it. This was revealed in a community engagement report from the office of Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso.
The report was released on Tuesday. It was forty pages of printed text. In its report, the office relied on feedback from two public forums held by the president in Brooklyn. For every positive argument, the office received at least three responses against the construction.
Some Coney Island residents came out to demonstrate. They expressed their concerns on a variety of grounds—traffic disruption, difficulty in traveling, increased crime rates, etc. Many spoke out about the spread of gambling addiction and the damage that threatens local businesses.
More than two hundred respondents expressed their opinion on the casino construction, which is supposed to cost the county three billion dollars.
Reynoso took a neutral stance and did not draw any definitive conclusions. He is a Democrat and has not ruled out support for the project on his part. That said, Reynoso said such feedback from residents should serve as a guide for developers seeking to open a casino in Coney Island through the state government's raffle.
"Now casino operators know how most of Coney Island feels."
Reynoso has a vote on the commission. His vote will be one of six. So, the president's opinion is significant. The office's report vividly outlined Coney Island's problems, and Reynoso urged using that to oppose the residents. That way, the developers' proposal will be more persuasive and stronger.
A variety of companies intend to bid. Some of them have teamed up to submit a joint bid. They are Saratoga Casino Holdings, Chickasaw Nation, real estate firm Thor Equities, and entertainment company Legends.
The project to build the resort is called The Coney. The developer's website states that it will bring thousands of new jobs to the residents of Coney Island. Their concept is to fulfill a commitment to the entire Brooklyn community.
In January, the borough launched a drawing for three downstate casino licenses. They totaled $500 million. Two of the permits will go to casinos with wagers in Yonkers and southeast Queens. About ten developers will compete for the latter license. As for real money casinos on the Internet, so far they are prohibited in the state. This is why the construction of a land-based casino is so important.
At least six blueprints have been prepared at the moment. Of those, one for the Citi Field parking lots in Queens, one for the Nassau Coliseum complex on Long Island, and one for Trump Golf Links in the Bronx.
