It’s the end of the road for two West Side casino bids. Councilmember Erik Bottcher cast decisive “no” votes on Wednesday, after the Community Advisory Committees weighed the high-stakes proposals for Caesars Palace Times Square and The Avenir.
In an email statement timed with the first vote, Bottcher said his decision followed “countless conversations with constituents in coffee shops, living rooms and on street corners, extensive public engagement and careful deliberation.” While he acknowledged the economic potential of the projects, Bottcher argued that casinos carry a “particularly high bar” for community support that has not been met. “Despite extensive outreach by the applicants, that level of support has not materialized,” he said.
Manhattan Borough President Mark Levine also announced his opposition in an email sent during the Caesars Palace Times Square vote, revealing that he would say no to both that proposal and The Avenir. While acknowledging that casinos can deliver jobs, tax revenue and nonprofit support — and even noting the Caesars proposal’s “laudably diverse ownership group” — Levine warned that the potential benefits were outweighed by the dangers of destabilizing Broadway’s $14 billion cultural engine and worsening congestion, safety and quality-of-life issues in Times Square and Hell’s Kitchen.
Laura Smith, Mayor Eric Adams’ representative on the committee, cast one of the two “yes” votes but voiced frustration over how the decision unfolded. She argued that the timeline was accelerated at the request of some committee members, cutting short nearly two weeks of deliberation. “These are complex proposals with significant changes along the way,” Smith said. “The accelerated timeline has constrained the committee’s ability to meet the very standards of transparency, engagement and thorough review that were built into the CAC framework.”
After the meeting adjourned, SL Green CEO Marc Holliday lashed out in an impromptu address. Visibly shaking with anger, Holliday called the outcome “a despicable display of cowardice, lack of leadership, lack of consideration for all the people who would benefit from this proposal.” He accused opponents of running from their responsibilities, declaring, “The benefits you denied this community and this city and state — you have to live with that history forever.”
Talking after the meeting, Assemblymember Tony Simone said the advisory committee had done exactly what it was set up to do — listen to the people who live on the West Side. “We heard them loud and clear,” he said. “Over 1,000 emails and phone calls came in from Manhattan Plaza to Midtown, from residents and small businesses alike, saying they did not want this to be the economic driver in our district.”
While acknowledging “there are good people on all sides of this debate,” Simone stressed that the community’s rejection was about preserving the fabric of the neighborhood. “We all want more jobs, union jobs, housing and open space — a community that thrives,” he said. “But this was not the answer to that. Our teachers, police officers, government workers and middle-class families should not be pushed out of the West Side. The message today is clear: this community deserves growth that keeps it livable for everyone.”
The No Times Square Casino Coalition, which has swelled to more than 35 organizations from Broadway unions to local block associations, hailed the decision as a victory for the theater district and the wider West Side. “This was a vote to protect the magic of Broadway for the 100,000 New Yorkers who depend on it for their livelihoods, and for the tens of millions who come from around the world to experience it,” said Jason Laks, President of The Broadway League. “A casino can go anywhere, but Broadway only lives here.”
The CAC vote on the Caesars Palace Times Square bid:
- Governor Kathy Hochul – Yes
- Mayor Eric Adams – Yes
- Manhattan Borough President Mark Levine – No
- Senator Liz Krueger – No
- Assemblymember Tony Simone – No
- Councilmember Erik Bottcher – No
As CAC Chair Matthew Tighe began to read through a summary of amendments to The Avenir casino bid, the proceedings were briefly interrupted by a fire safety announcement over the building’s PA system. Without missing a beat, Tighe quipped, “the committee disregards,” drawing laughs and breaking the tension in the room.
Ahead of the meeting, developers Silverstein Properties and Rush Street Gaming had asked the CAC to postpone the vote, arguing that the process was unfair. In an email, a spokesperson for The Avenir said the committee sent them a “very significant request” at 10:50pm last night, leaving no time to respond. “This action taints the CAC process and today’s vote should be postponed,” the spokesperson wrote. The request was denied, and the vote proceeded as scheduled.
Angel Vasquez, Governor Kathy Hochul’s representative, echoed those concerns about timing. “I believe that this vote should have been postponed,” he said, noting that nearly two weeks remained before the state’s deadline and negotiations over housing components of the bid had been ongoing as late as the night before.
Mayor Eric Adams’ representative, Nabeela Malik, delivered the same statement read earlier during the Caesars Palace Times Square hearing — expressing disappointment that the timeline had been accelerated and warning that the compressed process limited the committee’s ability to fully evaluate changes and community feedback.
Richard Gottfried, speaking on behalf of Senator Brad Hoylman-Sigal, praised the process as unusually open and collaborative compared to his decades in public service. But he ultimately cast his vote against the project, saying the thorough deliberations had only underscored his concerns.
After the vote, Silverstein Properties COO Dino Fusco reiterated the team’s frustration with how the process unfolded. He said The Avenir was blindsided by a “very significant” eleventh-hour request from the committee to amend its application with more than a billion dollars in additional housing. The request, Fusco noted, arrived at 10:50pm the night before the meeting.
“We didn’t have the ability in the amount of time to be able to answer that request,” Fusco told reporters, adding that the development team had already delivered a 19-page response to more than 20 CAC questions a full day before the deadline. He said the developers twice asked for the vote to be postponed so they could respond properly, but were denied.
Fusco also pointed out that Councilmember Erik Bottcher had issued a statement opposing both the Caesars and Avenir bids more than an hour before the Avenir vote even began. “Again, we respectfully request that you postpone the CAC vote so that we can continue to work with the CAC in good faith in this process, as we have done for the last two and a half months,” Fusco said, reading from remarks he had planned to deliver to the committee before the meeting was gaveled to a close.
Asked if Silverstein would move ahead with development of the site without the casino, Fusco was blunt: “Right now, there is no plan to build anything on that site.” He explained that the parcel, which the company has owned for over a decade, is hemmed in by a FedEx facility, a Con Edison substation, a Port Authority bus ramp and the entrance to the Lincoln Tunnel — though he mistakenly referred to it as the Holland Tunnel during his comments. The constraints, he said, make it unattractive for both residential and life science projects. “In our investigations to try to build residential units, it does not work economically. People don’t want to live in a location like that,” he said. “Economically, I don’t think it’s viable to begin anything imminently on that site.”
Shortly after the votes, Assemblymember Tony Simone joined residents and union members in Duffy Square for a rain-soaked press conference. While Simone reiterated that his office had heard “thousands of emails and calls” urging rejection of the bids, much of the focus was on community members who said the outcome reflected their concerns.
Leah Okin of the Theatrical Wardrobe Union Local 764 said Broadway workers felt validated by the decision. “We are so appreciative that everyone heard our members,” she said, noting their dedication to keeping Broadway safe and sustainable as both a workplace and a cultural beacon.
Local public safety advocate Delores Rubin, co-chair of the Midtown Community Improvement Coalition, reminded attendees that Times Square is not just a tourist hub but also a neighborhood. She thanked the CAC for recognizing that residents overwhelmingly opposed the casino proposals. But Rubin also struck a forward-looking note, urging the city and state to focus on housing, open space and other investments that would serve both residents and the millions who continue to visit New York.