A crowd jeered Soo Kim of Bally’s before a community panel took a non-binding vote to oppose the company’s New York casino project.
Community Board 10, an advisory board made up of Bronx, New York, residents and officials, voted 29-5 to oppose a proposed Bally’s hotel-casino complex at what is now called Bally’s Links at Ferry Point. The golf course was formerly owned by President Donald Trump’s organisation.
The non-binding vote on 20 March came after a contentious meeting. It included heated argument and expletives from the board as an audience member was removed. The meeting followed the city planning board’s decision to remap and rezone what is now parkland to permit the project’s 500-room hotel, 200,000-square-foot casino and 2,000-seat event centre.
The board’s vote is only advisory. It marks the first step in a lengthy public review process that will see the Bally’s proposal move next to Bronx Borough president Vanessa Gibson. Afterward, the Bronx Borough Board, the Department of City Planning, the City Council and, ultimately, the mayor’s office will also review it.
Bally’s is among 11 contenders for three downstate casino licences expected to be awarded by the end of 2025. While Bally’s has claimed to have wide support for the project, local residents bitterly opposed to the project testified at the hearing.
Board 10 chairman Joseph Russo invited 10 speakers, five for and five against the project. Those opposed disrupted remarks by Bally’s chairman Soo Kim, whose references to his own childhood in nearby Whitestone, Queens drew jeers.
While speakers complained about traffic and potential crime associated with the project, Kim noted the casino would be bordered by “a couple hundred acres of golf course, a cemetery and a major interstate that carries 40 million cars a year”, according to the Bronx Times.
Chairman addresses heckling of Bally’s
Russo became frustrated with the heckling during Kim’s presentation.
“God damn it, what the hell is wrong with you?” he said. “Where did you guys grow up, in a f-ing barn?” The audience was ushered out shortly thereafter, for closed-door deliberations by the panel.
In a statement to the Bronx Times after the vote, Kim did not reference the interruptions or Russo’s remarks. He maintained Bally’s support for the borough.
“While we acknowledge the board’s advisory vote, our commitment to the Bronx remains unwavering,” he said. “That includes more than 9,000 signed pledge cards from registered voters in this community – many of whom may not attend board meetings but have made their voices heard. We will continue to listen, learn and refine our proposal to ensure it delivers lasting, generational impact for the Bronx and New York City.”
Union support offered for casino
Supporters of the New York casino project, including several union representatives, cited the economic boost it could bring to the Bronx. Bally’s has promised 15,000 construction jobs and 4,000 permanent jobs.
The project’s $2.5 billion (£1.94 billion, €2.32 billion) casino resort would join the 17-acre, Jack Nicklaus-designed golf course on the waterfront parcel where the East River meets Long Island Sound.
