Then Jay-Z, whose entertainment company Roc Nation is partnering with SL Green and Caesar’s on the Times Square casino bid, posted an open letter on Instagram, pleading with New Yorkers to pick him.
“This is too important of a moment in our city’s illustrious history” the letter warned. New Yorkers should go with an operator who puts them “at the top of their agenda.”
Companies getting crazy and push for Casino in New York city
New Yorkers may be forgiven for having some doubts that a Times Square casino would really have their best interests at heart. Especially as the biggest sweetener — $115 million for diverse theater programs that include daycare for Broadway workers — seems aimed at softening up a group of Broadway owners who’ve been trying to block the Times Square casino.
(Nor is it the first time Jay-Z has been deployed to win over casino skeptics: “I remember one of the companies excitedly told me about Jay-Z. ‘He’s coming on board. Maybe you want to meet him?’” state senator Liz Krueger told Bloomberg earlier this year.)
It’s been a few months since New York opened the bidding process for the three downstate casino licenses, and billionaires have spent much of that time falling all over themselves to win New York City’s.
Right now, real-estate giants like Related and SL Green, hedge-funder/Mets owner Steve Cohen, real estate scion Steven Soloviev, and Coney Island magnate Joe Sitt have all thrown down a $1 million application fee to be in the running.
They’ll need to win over a six-member community advisory committee, then spend $500 million on the license and another $500 million in capital investment. It’s up to the applicants to figure out what kind of proposal and community perks package will persuade the committee to pick them, which leaves a lot of room for creativity.
