Hard Rock Queens Casino Has ‘Good Shot’ at Approval, Says State Senator

Posted on: August 18, 2025, 11:41h. 

Last updated on: August 18, 2025, 11:50h.

Todd Shriber @etfgodfather Read More
Expertise: Financial, Gaming Business, Mergers and Acquisitions.
  • State senator says Cohen/Hard Rock bid has credible shot of approval
  • Project is viewed as a leading contender for one of three downstate permits
  • Politician opposes casinos in Manhattan

A plan by Steven Cohen and Hard Rock International to bring a casino hotel to Queens has a legitimate chance at winning one of the three downstate casino licenses up for grabs in New York.

New York Manhattan casino Brad Hoylman-Sigal
(L to R) New York State Sen. Brad Hoylman-Sigal, moderator Errol Louis, Dr. Calvin Sun, and New York City Councilmember Keith Powers participate in the Democratic primary for Manhattan Borough president on May 30, 2025. Hoylman-Sigal says Hard Rock’s Queens casino pitch has a shot at being approved. (Image: X)

That’s the point of view of State Sen. Brad Hoylman-Sigal (D), who shared his perspective in a Sunday interview with CBS News New York’s “The Point with Marcia Kramer.” He said the Queens casino effort, which is backed by New York Mets owner Cohen, has “a very good shot” at winning a license.

That $8 billion plan is known as Metropolitan Park, which if approved, would be a sprawling entertainment complex featuring dining options, entertainment areas, green space, and the gaming venue. The Cohen/Hard Rock plan calls for 25 acres of parkland for public use, including five acres of athletic fields, eateries, a live music venue, enhanced cycle access and roads, as well as a $163 million community impact fund.

Hoylman-Sigal’s commentary on the Queens casino plan isn’t necessarily a ringing endorsement because the politician is opposed to gaming expansion in New York on the grounds that such venues can do more harm than good in the communities in which they’re located.

Hoylman-Sigal Still Opposed to Manhattan Casino

One reason Hoylman-Sigal appears somewhat constructive on the Cohen/Hard Rock Queens casino effort is because he’s highly opposed to a gaming venue being built in Manhattan — the borough in which he’s the Democratic nominee for borough president.

If you want a casino in Manhattan, don’t vote for Brad Hoylman-Sigal,” he said in the CBS interview. “If you want to exacerbate the problem of quality of life in a neighborhood, drop a casino in the middle of that. Crime, traffic, addiction. Casinos feed on all of those societal problems.”

That jibes with previous commentary delivered by the politician. In prior interviews, he said that no one he’s encountered on the campaign trail in Manhattan wants a casino there. In the CBS interview, he added that casinos are “shortsighted” ways for cash-starved New York to generate revenue.

“Again, the problems that casinos bring to neighborhoods are well documented. Those cost the public purse a lot of money too,” he said. “That said, if a community strongly embraces a casino in another borough, more power to them. I think the one at Citi Field has a very good shot after we amended a statute in Albany to allow that casino to go forward.”

Queens Casino Could Have Tailwinds

Eight bidders submitted proposals for the three downstate licenses, and with the opposition to Manhattan gaming venues, there’s a growing sense the Hard Rock pitch could be one of the three winners, meaning Queens could be home to two gaming venues.

It’s been widely speculated that MGM Resorts International’s Empire City Casino in Yonkers and Resorts World New York in Queens are the frontrunners for two of the licenses, implying the other six contenders are essentially vying for one permit.

New York regulators are expected to award the downstate licenses by the end of this year.