More than 100 people filled a Bronx high school on Tuesday for Community Board 10’s public hearing to weigh in on Bally’s proposed casino project in Throggs Neck.
Many residents in attendance voiced strong opposition to the Bally’s Bronx casino plan, which would add a 3.1 million-square-foot complex to Ferry Point Park. Bally’s already operates the city-owned golf course on the site, formerly managed by a company associated with President Donald Trump.
The attendees, mostly from the Throggs Neck area, expressed concerns about crime, public safety, traffic congestion, and the potential loss of parkland that would come from the arrival of a casino.
Christopher Jewett, Senior Vice President for Corporate Development at Bally’s, opened the hearing with a presentation outlining the project’s scope, amenities, and purported community benefits.
Bally’s plans to develop a 500,000-square-foot gaming hall on the Bronx site, along with a 500-room hotel with a spa and meeting space, retail shops, a 2,000-seat event center, and two parking garages with capacity for up to 4,660 vehicles. The development would be spread across 19 acres on the public golf course at the park.
Tuesday’s public hearing was a required step in New York’s land use review process, ensuring mandatory public engagement as Bally’s seeks approval for its development plans. The company must secure a zoning map amendment and other land use changes to proceed with the project, which will ultimately go before the City Council for a vote.
Jewett said Bally’s Bronx would bring many benefits to the area, including 4,000 permanent union jobs, parkland improvements, and a privately funded police station.
He noted that Bally’s had conducted community outreach by going door to door in surrounding neighborhoods. He said the company approached 3,700 residents, with approximately 3,200 expressing support for the casino, while about 500 saying they opposed it.
“So, north of 80% support it,” Jewett said at the hearing.
But his statistics were greeted with skepticism, with a handful of residents shouting “lies!” One man repeatedly shouted an expletive and had to be removed, although he was later allowed to return.
Community Board 10 Chairman, Joseph Russo had to interrupt the proceedings several times throughout the night to remind the crowd to settle down, as tensions and passions ran high. People waved signs that read “CasiNO!” and some that said, “No Transparency!”
Casinos and Crime
Crime and safety emerged as a major point of contention during the hearing, with many attendees arguing that a casino would lead to an increase in burglaries, prostitution, and drug use in the neighborhood. They pointed to other cities as examples where crime allegedly spiked following the introduction of casinos.
Deborah Teska, a Throggs Neck resident of 60 years, cited Atlantic City as a cautionary tale.
“I went to the Borgata; I went to Harrah’s,” Teska told the attendees at the hearing, referring to Atlantic City casinos. “And when I left those communities and stepped into the surrounding areas, I was afraid for my life.”
Bally’s, however, insists it is taking crime concerns seriously. The company has pledged to fund a new NYPD station, which could be located within the casino or nearby, and plans to employ private security throughout the complex.
But many Throggs Neck residents remained unconvinced. They noted that the nearby 45th Precinct is already understaffed and doubted Bally’s ability to keep both the casino and its surrounding neighborhoods safe.
“Crime will increase,” said Ann Sadofsky, a Throggs Neck resident. “And I don’t care if they have rent-a-cops on their property. It does nothing for the surrounding areas.”
Despite residents’ concerns, studies on whether casinos contribute to crime have been inconclusive. Research published by the National Criminal Justice Reference Service (NCJRS) on Reno, Nevada, found that casinos did not appear to be crime hot spots. However, another NCJRS study examining Atlantic City reported a significant spike in crime in the years following the opening of its casinos.
“This is a Land Grab”
Many residents expressed concern that the casino development would go up on 19-acres of public park space. The 19 acres is currently part of the public golf course operated by Bally’s and includes a parking lot, a clubhouse, and a chipping and putting area.
Bally’s has said that it’s committed to rebuilding the golf course amenities in a different section of the park and adding new parkland to replace the alienated land, though the presentation Tuesday did not specify how.
The proposal includes a request to repurpose, or “alienate” the 19 acres of public parkland for the development. The company will ultimately require the state legislature to grant the authority to the New York City Parks Department to enter into negotiations with Bally’s for this 19-acre parcel.
Most community members present at Tuesday’s hearing were upset at the thought of giving up park space for a non-park use. Some said the residents of Throggs Neck had a responsibility to care for public parkland, especially since not everyone in the Bronx has easy access to green space.
Sandi Lusk, a Throggs Neck resident, claimed that Bally’s will take more than 19 acres of parkland in the belief that the project will expand. She said the space needed to be preserved for residents.
“ Ferry Point Park is utilized by hundreds of people in the summer, people who don’t have backyards, people who need that space,” Lusk said. “My fear and my view is that this is a land grab.”
However, some questioned the sincerity of those expressing outrage over the potential loss of parkland.
Lauren Patterson, who volunteers to clean up Ferry Point Park when NYC Parks Dept. staffing falls short, challenged their motives.
“Everyone suddenly concerned about this park—I’ve never seen any of your faces,” Patterson said
Patterson saw the casino as an inevitability and said that he appreciated the opportunity to engage with Bally’s and have a voice in the development process.
“Something’s going to happen whether we win or we lose,” Patterson said. “Or we can be actively part of making a decision, because if somebody is going to make a decision, I’d rather be part of it.”
Traffic Concerns
Many residents who spoke during the hearing raised concerns about traffic in the area.
In response, Bally’s pledged to widen the road leading to the proposed development and upgrade storm drainage to reduce the risk of flooding on the low-lying roadway. The company also proposed building an overpass on Lafayette Avenue to ease congestion.
However, residents at the hearing argued that the Bronx already struggles with heavy traffic and that a large-scale development in Throggs Neck would only worsen congestion on local streets.
Carol Ligotino, who spoke during the hearing, said she had listened to the casino pitch several times before and worried that Bally’s transportation infrastructure improvements only addressed traffic coming from other New York boroughs and Long Island via the Whitestone Bridge.
She said she was concerned the company had not done enough to reduce congestion when it comes to cars coming from north of the Bronx, such as Westchester and Connecticut.
“Who do you think is gonna come to the casino? The people that live on the east side of I-95,” she said. “Coming down from Pelham, Mamaroneck, Larchmont, Connecticut, White Plains, Mount Vernon, all of those areas, and it hasn’t been addressed once.”
Most of the attendees who spoke during Tuesday’s hearing were opposed to the casino proposal. But a small group of supporters said the casino would be a boon to Throggs Neck given the jobs it would bring.
A Bally’s spokesperson said that there were many people at the hearing who liked the plan but remained quiet. The spokesperson told the Bronx Times that after one man’s outburst early in the meeting, supporters remained silent.
“Many of the supporters were intimidated and afraid to speak because of the unruly environment,” the spokesperson said.
Meanwhile Bronx elected officials wouldn’t say either way whether they supported the proposal, with Assembly Member Michael Benedetto calling it an “interesting proposal” during a conversation with the Bronx Times. He noted that he had concerns about traffic, but that he was optimistic about the number of jobs the casino would bring to the borough.
State Sen. Nathalia Fernandez, who chairs the Alcoholism And Substance Use Disorders Committee, didn’t say whether she backed the proposal. She issued a statement making it clear that all proposed gaming establishments in New York must be held accountable for addressing addictive and problematic gambling.
The Bally’s Bronx proposal is just one of 11 different proposed casino projects competing for three gambling licenses in downstate New York. So far, most projects have gotten significant pushback from the local communities.
