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Jay-Z joins SL Green, Caesars casino bid

Roc Nation announced as entertainment partner in Times Square proposal

From left: SL Green's Marc Holliday and Roc Nation's Jay-Z along with a rendering of the proposed Caesars Palace Times Square project (Getty Images, SL Green Realty Corp)
From left: SL Green's Marc Holliday and Roc Nation's Jay-Z along with a rendering of the proposed Caesars Palace Times Square project (Getty Images, SL Green Realty Corp)

You can’t knock the hustle of SL Green Realty and Caesars Entertainment.

The companies behind the Times Square casino bid at 1515 Broadway brought in rapper and business mogul Jay-Z to add to their effort to win one of the few licenses soon to be available, the New York Post first reported. Roc Nation, the Brooklyn native’s company, announced Monday it will oversee entertainment options at the proposed casino.

SL Green in October announced plans to turn the office building into a casino operated by Caesars. Dubbed Caesars Palace Times Square, the casino would only occupy eight floors of the 54-story building, with none on the ground floor.

The casino may occupy as little as 250,000 square feet altogether, the Post reported. The floors would have space dedicated for restaurants and other entertainment options to operate under a five-star, 800-key hotel slated for development.

The fate of the office occupants is unclear if SL Green and Caesars secure a casino license. Anchor tenant Viacom’s lease runs through 2031.

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Caesars Entertainment's CEO Tom Reeg and SL Green's CEO Mark Holliday along with the Minskoff Theatre at 1515 Broadway (Photo Illustration by Steven Dilakian for The Real Deal with Getty)
Commercial
New York
SL Green, Caesars rally Times Square interests for casino bid
Illustration of Stefan Soloviev (HaydenSoloviev, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons, Getty)
Development
New York
Soloviev bets long-dormant Midtown East site in casino sweepstakes

The parties behind the Times Square casino proposal were rustling up support with area players, The New York Times reported in October. SL Green and Caesars reportedly told neighbors the casino would bring additional security to Times Square in the form of 50 artificial intelligence surveillance cameras and additional safety officers.

State officials will start accepting proposals next month for casinos in New York City. Venues near tourist attractions and transit hubs, such as Times Square, are expected to hold an edge.

There are three licenses up for grabs, but two are seen as ahead of the pack.

Resorts World/Genting at Aqueduct in Queens and the Empire City/MGM at Yonkers already operate as slot parlors. Other hopefuls include bids by Related and Wynn Resorts at Hudson Yards, Vornado Realty Trust at Herald Square, the Soloviev Group in Midtown East, Steve Cohen and Hard Rock in Flushing, Queens, and Thor and Saratoga Casino Holdings in Coney Island, Brooklyn.

— Holden Walter-Warner

Tags
CasinosJay ZSL GreenTimes Square
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