{"id":77695,"date":"2025-07-20T09:57:08","date_gmt":"2025-07-20T09:57:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/77695\/"},"modified":"2025-07-20T09:57:08","modified_gmt":"2025-07-20T09:57:08","slug":"an-adams-veto-must-give-a-bronx-casino-a-chance","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/77695\/","title":{"rendered":"An Adams veto must give a Bronx casino a chance"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>For too long, the Bronx has been overlooked in NYC\u2019s economic development plans. Major projects in Manhattan, Brooklyn or Queens are hailed as victories for working families. But when it\u2019s the Bronx\u2019s turn, the door too often slams shut.<\/p>\n<p>That\u2019s what happened last Monday, when the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2025\/07\/16\/nyregion\/ballys-casino-bronx.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">City Council voted to block<\/a> even consideration of the <a href=\"https:\/\/nycasinos.ny.gov\/applicant-ballys-new-york-casino\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Bally\u2019s Ferry Point proposal<\/a> \u2014 a $4 billion private investment that would have delivered:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400\">15,000 union construction jobs<\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400\">4,000 permanent union jobs averaging $96,000 per year<\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400\">Well more than $625 million in community benefits, including:\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400\">$17.5 million annually for schools, parks, youth programs, and nonprofits<\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400\">More than $100 million in park improvements in Community Board 10<\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400\">A satellite NYPD precinct, along with $75 million in traffic mitigation<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>This was not just a casino \u2014 it was a comprehensive economic development initiative shaped through 18 months of outreach to Bronx residents, civic groups, schools, community and small business leaders, and elected officials. The land is currently underutilized and isolated, with no better opportunity in sight. The project would have transformed it into a job-creating, community-supporting, tax revenue\u2013generating destination.<\/p>\n<p>Bally\u2019s didn\u2019t just pitch an idea \u2014 they showed up in real ways. They responded in writing to every concern about traffic, parking, and design. They proposed removing the DOT-imposed bike lane and adding a traffic lane to ease congestion. They pledged to hire Bronx residents through a dedicated Workforce Advisory Board and partnerships with local schools and colleges.<\/p>\n<p>They also launched \u2014 and continue to operate \u2014 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.throggsneckbid.com\/get-on-the-free-bus\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">a free shuttle bus connecting East Bronx residents to the Throggs Neck ferry landing<\/a> and nearby small businesses, addressing a longstanding transit gap in a community underserved by public transportation.<\/p>\n<p>The 10-stop route, running weekdays from Westchester Square through East Tremont to Ferry Point Park, has already carried thousands of riders since its launch. Developed in partnership with local leaders and branded in tribute to the late <a href=\"https:\/\/clarkassociatesfuneralhome.com\/tribute\/details\/823\/Joseph-Kelleher\/obituary.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Bronx Chamber Chair Joe Kelleher<\/a>, the shuttle is a lasting investment in Bronx connectivity \u2014 and a real example of what it means to show up as a good neighbor.<\/p>\n<p>And in one of the most tangible community investments, <a href=\"https:\/\/abc7ny.com\/post\/girls-catholic-preston-high-school-saved-closure-ballys-foundation-purchases-land-nuns\/16225965\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Bally\u2019s Foundation helped save Preston High School<\/a>, a beloved institution that had been facing imminent closure. Bally\u2019s Foundation worked directly with the school community \u2014 its principal, teachers and alumni \u2014 to secure the school\u2019s survival, without fanfare and without conditions, because they understood what Preston meant to the Bronx.<\/p>\n<p>On community benefits, they didn\u2019t just respond to requests for more \u2014 they significantly raised the bar: increasing their annual commitment from $10 million to $17.5 million, with funds designated for use by the local councilmember, borough president, state senator, and assemblymember. They also pledged to prioritize local businesses in both hiring and procurement.<\/p>\n<p>Despite all of this, the local councilmember said no \u2014 rejecting an offer that met every condition she set, dismissing letters of support from every Catholic school in the district, and ignoring the 3,500 constituents who signed pledge cards in favor of the project, along with the overwhelming majority who showed up to the Council hearing to testify in support. Only three Bronx residents testified against it \u2014 more than 10 times that number testified in favor.<\/p>\n<p>This was a missed opportunity for the Bronx. If this same project had been proposed in Queens or Brooklyn, it would have sailed through. Queens could afford to lose Amazon because it has multiple massive economic engines. The Bronx doesn\u2019t \u2014 we need this project.<\/p>\n<p>That\u2019s why we\u2019re calling on Mayor Adams to veto the Council\u2019s action and allow this project to move forward. Under the City Charter, if the Council fails to override the veto within 10 days, the project is approved. Given the timing and scheduling challenges of the August recess, this may be the only path forward.<\/p>\n<p>This is about more than Bally\u2019s. It\u2019s about the Bronx \u2014 and whether we ever get to say yes to opportunity. It\u2019s about whether our borough gets to lead its own future, or whether we\u2019ll always be told \u201cnot yet,\u201d \u201cnot here,\u201d or \u201cnot for you.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>This project is bigger than any one councilmember. Bigger than one neighborhood. And one only needs to look at this process to wonder why we have a housing and affordability crisis in the city.<\/p>\n<p>We are tired of being left behind. Every borough in this city has received its signature developments \u2014 from Hudson Yards to Citi Field to the Barclays Center. The Bronx deserves the same.<\/p>\n<p>We urge the mayor to stand with Bronx residents, with labor, with small businesses, with working families \u2014 and to veto this decision.<\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s the Bronx\u2019s turn.<\/p>\n<p>Salamanca, chair of the Council Land Use Committee, and\u00a0Riley, chair of the Subcommittee on Zoning, are Bronx councilmen.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"For too long, the Bronx has been overlooked in NYC\u2019s economic development plans. Major projects in Manhattan, Brooklyn&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":77696,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5122],"tags":[5229,405,403,5226,5225,5228,5227,1269,67,586,132,5230,68,2969],"class_list":{"0":"post-77695","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-new-york","8":"tag-america","9":"tag-new-york","10":"tag-new-york-city","11":"tag-newyork","12":"tag-newyorkcity","13":"tag-ny","14":"tag-nyc","15":"tag-opinion","16":"tag-united-states","17":"tag-united-states-of-america","18":"tag-unitedstates","19":"tag-unitedstatesofamerica","20":"tag-us","21":"tag-usa"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/114884971292920962","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/77695","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=77695"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/77695\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/77696"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=77695"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=77695"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=77695"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}