Las Vegas to Come to New York

Casino market expanding in the Empire State.

The Kansas City-based EPR Properties and Empire Resorts have unveiled plans for a $750 million Las Vegas- style casino project 90 miles northwest of New York City. The State of New York will grant four new casino licenses this year, with the EPR-Empire partnership competing for one of them.

Empire has done most of the planning and has been working on obtaining the licensing for three years, so could begin construction almost immediately. Empire Chairman Emmanuel Pearlman has this to say:
"Our proposed casino and four-star hotel is already designed, and we can begin to build without delay, should we receive a destination resort license.”

New York expanding casinos

American gambling laws allow states to create their own casino markets, and last year the state legislature amended New York’s constitution to legalize commercial casinos, a move which was also approved by voters in a referendum. State officials announced that they would grant four licenses to complement the state’s five existing Indian casinos.

Numerous US states including neighboring Connecticut and Pennsylvania have also expanded casino licensing to boost employment and bring in tax revenue. New Jersey and Delaware legalized online gambling, with the first-ever online casinos in America being launched in the two states last year.