NEW YORK (PIX11) -- A bidding war for a New York City metro area casino license is heating up.
Ahead of a zoning subcommittee meeting on Tuesday, residents are calling on City Council members to reject the proposed rezoning for a casino at the Hudson Yards.
They are against changes in the current zoning, which has been in place since 2009, and add that nothing positive can come out of having a casino in their neighborhood.
"I grew up right off Tenth Avenue right there," says 20-year-old Joaquin Elenoonly who is well involved in the community he grew up in. He says he’s ready to speak his mind ahead of Tuesday's rezoning subcommittee hearing. “I don’t want a casino there."
He's referring to Hudson Yards West, which received a green light from the City Planning Commission at the beginning of April, moving it one step closer to an approved reality.
According to the Hudson Yards West developers, some of the benefits the casino would bring include: 35,000 union construction jobs during development, a new 5.6-acre green public park, a new public K-8 school, a daycare center, a community facility, and more than $2 billion in revenue for the MTA.
"Who would want their kid to be growing up right next to a casino, right next to a packed convention center?" adds Eleno.
Ambur Nicosia has been living in the area for years. She says community members have been going to hearings to speak their minds, and adds Tuesday won't be any different. "I think there’s a sense of shock that we are even discussing this, the community overwhelmingly opposes it, and it doesn’t benefit any of us."
In a statement, one of the Hudson Yards West developers says in part: “We tried to think outside the box and identified a historically successful funding model that would allow us to increase the amount of housing at the site to up to 4,000 units, while still preserving the other critical benefits of the project.” However, community members say they are still losing out under the proposed rezoning.
"The current plan that we have has up to 5,700 units," adds Nicosia.
Community members are gathering outside City Hall on Tuesday morning to urge councilmembers to reject any rezoning.
Meanwhile, the development team for Hudson Yards West says there is a lot of community support for the project.
English (US) ·