New York isn’t exactly known as a hot spot for Russian Roulette, poker, or traditional brick-and-mortar casinos, but that could be about to change in a big way. Right now, some of the biggest developers in the country are battling for the chance to build the city’s very first casino. And pretty much everyone has something to say about it, from state senators to union workers.
Last Thursday (June 26), supporters and critics of the eight proposed downstate casino projects held rallies all over the city. They made their voices heard ahead of the June 27 deadline for developers to submit their bids.
Getting to this point hasn’t been smooth. The mayor and several elected officials are backing the idea, but plenty of community leaders are pushing back. They argue that casinos would bring more traffic, increase crime, and derail the region’s fragile recovery from the pandemic…