“I feel confident. I feel bullish. Bet on Queens,” Richards said Sunday, a day before the New York Gaming Facility Location board is set to decide whether to issue up to three downstate casino licenses — with two bidders pitching locations in Queens.

“Why go to Manhattan? You can stay in Queens! Queens becomes a global entertainment hub,” Richards said.

Illustration of Resorts World casino at Aqueduct Racetrack in Queens, New York. AP

New York Mets owner Steve Cohen is leading a group that wants to build a gaming complex near Citi Field while Genting’s Resorts World is bidding for a casino at Aqueduct race track.

Bally’s is also bidding for a casino complex at Ferry Point, President Trump’s former golf course in The Bronx.

The proposed $8 billion Cohen-Hard Rock Metropolitan Park casino complex would be a tourist magnet and an economic multiplier next to the US Tennis Center, new soccer stadium and the Mets home stadium, Richards said.

He said Resorts World, which has operated a slots parlor for more than a decade, can offer live table games within months because they already have the space to do so. The expanded complex with community benefits is worth $7.5 billion.

Both bidders will build concert halls for added entertainment.

“I feel confident. I feel bullish. Bet on Queens,” Richards said. Gabriella Bass

The proposed $8 billion Cohen-Hard Rock Metropolitan Park casino complex would be a tourist magnet. Hard Rock International

Both sites are close to the borough’s two airports — Metropolitan Park near LaGuardia and Resorts World near Kennedy.

Meanwhile, Bally’s $4 billion bid has strong support from the Bronx Democratic Party elected officials, though it has faced some stiff neighborhood opposition.

Bally’s chairman Soo Kim told The Post Saturday he believes his chances of scoring a license “looks pretty good.”

“We put our best effort out there,” he said. “I don’t think we have any weak spots.”

New York Mets owner Steve Cohen (left) is leading a group that wants to build a gaming complex near Citi Field. James Keivom

Bally’s acquired the golf course at Ferry Point from the Trump Organization in 2023, and it’s now called Bally’s Golf Links at Ferry Point. It is on the Bronx side of the Whitestone Bridge that connects with Queens.

As part of the deal, Bally’s agreed to provide the Trump Organization an additional $115 million — if it wins a casino license.

The Gaming Facility Location Board is evaluating each project based on criteria set in state law. Economic activity and business development accounts for 70% of the grade, 10% for location site impact — and 20% combines for workforce enhancement and diversity framework.

Casino applicants each need to pay $500 million license fees to operate – which would go into the cash-strapped state’s coffers — as well commit to at least $500 million in capital investments on their projects.

Some of the proceeds from gaming operators will help fund mass transit.

Bally’s agreed to provide the Trump Organization an additional $115 million — if it wins a casino license. James Messerschmidt

A pool of what was once 11 bidders has dwindled to three – but there’s no guarantee each of the survivors will get licenses because the five-member board doesn’t have to award any.

But many Albany insiders said the immediate cash from the licenses will spur the state to award as many as 3.

The state Gaming Commission will have final say, ratifying or rejecting the awards made by the siting board by year’s end.

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Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Nancy Bannon’s temporary restraint could disrupt Cohen’s effort to secure a casino license, as it blocks the city from entering fresh deals tied to the Citi Field parking area.

The USTA argues that it has a superiority clause that affords it first access to the parking lot during the US Open. The lot in question is owned by the city but leased to the Mets. The USTA argued that the clause was violated earlier this year and any fresh agreements would violate it once again, especially if the casino bid is granted as expected.

“To ensure this essential suite of protections for the US Open, the Lease mandates a superiority clause in favor of the NTC,” reads the lawsuit. “Specifically, the Lease requires the City to include in every subsequently entered ‘deed, lease or license’ with third persons involving specified City-owned lands around the NTC facilities a statement: namely, that all rights granted under such subsequently entered deed, lease or license ‘are subject and subordinate in all respects to the rights of the USTA National Tennis Center’ (the Superiority Clause).”

Could this affect the Citi Field casino?

While the casino bid was expected to be approved in the next couple of weeks, this lawsuit could throw a spanner into the multi-million dollar works. A new agreement over the lot (which the judge has now blocked) was part of the promises made by the team behind the proposed casino, Metropolitan Park.

In their June application to the state’s Gaming Commission, Metropolitan Park stated that they would have a “negotiated binding agreement to control property no later than November 17, 2025 and a signed agreement before December 31, 2025.” However, this is now unable to move forward thanks to the judge’s temporary restraint.

It’s as yet unclear if this could endanger the license application. ReadWrite has reached out to both the USTA and Metropolitan Park for further details.

Featured image: Hard Rock

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