Casino companies are used to having a house advantage. But in the bidding process for three downstate casino licenses, it’s the local communities that those companies are hoping to call home that just might have the edge.
Roughly a dozen casino companies and real estate developers are mulling or planning on bidding for one of three casino licenses the state will grant in New York City and its surrounding suburbs. But before the state considers those high rollers’ proposals, they have to get signoff from Community Advisory Committees appointed by local lawmakers (including the governor and mayor or county executive) from the neighborhoods where they hope to open up shop. Meetings of those committees will be public.
