Manhattan loses bid for Mohegan Sun casino as community board rejects plan near UN
A six-acre proposal near the United Nations was rejected 4-2 by a state-commissioned advisory committee, ending Manhattan's pursuit of a casino for now.
NEW YORK — There will be no casino in Manhattan after a state-commissioned community advisory committee rejected the proposed Mohegan Sun resort near the United Nations headquarters on Monday.
Called Freedom Plaza, the six-acre project would have run from 38th Street to 41st Street, east of First Avenue, and would have combined a casino with hotels, retail, dining, entertainment and more than 1,000 residential units. The committee, whose members were appointed by Gov. Kathy Hochul, Mayor Eric Adams and other local officials, voted 4-2 against the plan after limited discussion.
In a last-minute bid to win local support, the developers said over the weekend they would make the more than 1,000 apartments permanently affordable and would pursue a slate of civic investments, including a museum dedicated to democracy, a community center, daycare and acres of public open space.
Michael Hershman, CEO of the Soloviev Group, which led the project, said the plan would have "revitalized" Midtown East and noted Manhattan is "the undisputed capital of the world" and deserved "a fully integrated resort" that would attract visitors while serving the community.
Mohegan Sun spokespersons did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
The decision leaves Manhattan without a casino proposal, while other options are still in play. Two other high-profile Manhattan concepts—a Jay-Z-backed Caesars Palace casino in Times Square and a West Side casino at Hudson Yards—were rejected by separate community boards last week.
With the Manhattan project off the table, five proposals remain in the mix for up to three state licenses for the New York City area. They include Bally's Casino on a Bronx public golf course, a casino on Brooklyn's Coney Island boardwalk and a Hard Rock venue planned next to Citi Field in Queens, as well as two racinos—one in Yonkers and one in Queens—that are seeking to convert to full-fledged casinos with live table games.
State gambling regulators are expected to reach a final decision in December.
Casinos can bring jobs. It can bring stability, tourism," he said in a television interview ahead of Monday’s vote. "So, I was surprised at some of the negative votes. Let the final process make the decision. We should not be stopping them at this local level."
Adams, a Democrat running for reelection as an independent, emphasized the broader economic stakes, saying the decision will play into ongoing debates about how and where New York expands gambling licenses.