A community advisory committee on Monday rejected a proposal to build a casino on Coney Island, ending a bid that project friends and foes argued would have fundamentally transformed the Brooklyn amusement park district.
The 4-2 vote against the Coney project made it the latest casino bid to be struck down by community advisory committees. In recent weeks, committees have voted against bids in Manhattan by similar margins, with only appointees to Gov. Kathy Hochul and Mayor Eric Adams voting in favor of the proposals.
“Coney Island really makes up part of the soul of New York and especially for the working people of this city, it’s an irreplaceable treasure,” said Marissa Solomon, a committee member appointed by Assemblymember Alec Brook-Krasny, who voted against the project and helped lead a grassroots effort against the casino.
The $3.4 billion bid was projected to create 4,000 union construction jobs and 4,500 permanent jobs, according to developers, who also said it would generate $1.8 billion in annual gross gaming revenue. In addition to a casino, the project called for a hotel, a 25,000 square foot entertainment venue and a convention center.
Developers argued that the project would be especially beneficial to an area with a 17% unemployment rate. Proponents also argued that the casino venture would make Coney Island a year-round destination, rather than a seasonal attraction.
William Fowler, spokesperson for Adams, said in a statement the outcome of the Coney Island vote was regrettable.
“We have worked with every applicant to help ensure they were competitive, including The Coney, and believe this proposal should have had a chance to move forward in the state’s process," Fowler said. "Instead, Brooklyn elected officials have robbed their borough of an opportunity to bring in thousands of good-paying jobs, and billions of dollars in investment that come with a licensed, full-scale commercial casino.”
The rejection of the Coney bid all but completes the penultimate phase of the casino-review process. A final community advisory committee vote is set for Tuesday on the proposed Metropolitan Park in Queens.
A state gaming panel is expected to award up to three downstate casino licenses in a process scheduled to conclude by year’s end. Also gaining approval by community advisory panels are projects targeting Yonkers and Queens, where limited gaming already exists, and the Bronx, which a separate community advisory committee OK’d in a Monday morning vote.
The Coney Island rejection did not surprise close observers of the process.
Council member Justin Brannan announced his opposition to the project in a Brooklyn Paper column last week, titled “Coney Island is Not for Sale.” In it, he wrote, “Coney Island is, was, and must always remain the Big Apple’s most famous egalitarian gathering place — a sanctuary where hard work, grit, and fun in the sun for everyday people always comes before false profits.”
This story was updated with additional comment.
