Times Square has it all — Broadway, glaring billboards, hotels and the Cheesecake Factory. But, SL Green wants more for the global tourist hub.
“We started evaluating every site we had in order to determine where we felt the best location would be to site one of these gaming facilities,” said Brett Herschenfeld, an executive at SL Green, which is teaming up with Caesars Entertainment to plan a casino in Times Square.
Herschenfeld talked about SL Green’s bid for a casino in Times Square on the latest episode of The Real Deal’s podcast Deconstruct, which digs deep into how New York has three gaming licenses up for grabs.
The firm, which is the largest commercial landlord in New York City, is not the only one planning to bid on one of New York’s licenses.
Vornado Realty is bidding for a site in Herald Square. Related has teamed up with Wynn Resorts for a Hudson Yards project. While Soloviev Group is looking at a Midtown East project. And that’s just in Manhattan. Joe Sitt’s Thor Equities has proposed a casino in Brooklyn’s Coney Island.
At the end of the day, the state’s Gaming Facility Location Board will make the final call on who gets the licenses. But SL Green is hopeful, in part because of its partner.
Given Caesars has a large loyalty program, SL Green is betting on the fact it won’t have to lure in too many new customers.
“I don’t think we could have found a better operator than Caesars,” Herschenfeld said.
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