by - Trump wants to get back into the casino business – as a landlord.
- Under an agreement struck in December, Trump would sublet 17 acres of his Bronx golf course to Bally’s.
- Trump’s name would not be on the casino, and the deal has yet to be approved by NY, NYC and the local government.
Ex-President Donald Trump wants to get back into the casino business – this time as a landlord in the Bronx.
Under an agreement with Bally’s in December, Trump would sublet a 17-acre portion of his public golf course in the Bronx to the gaming giant, which hopes to get the local, city and state permits needed to build a casino there.
The casino would only bear Bally’s name, not Trump’s, and the former president’s only connection would be that of a landlord, according to a source familiar with the sublease and not authorized to speak to the public.
Bally’s bid for a new casino on Trump Golf Links municipal property at Ferry Point was first reported by the New York Post on Sunday.
Bally’s proposal would join a gold rush race that has attracted bids to build Times Square arcades on a vacant lot near the United Nations headquarters across from St. Patrick’s Cathedral and adjacent to Citi Field, where the Mets play, the New, includes That reports the York Times.
The scramble for budding casino developers came after New York lawmakers approved in January that up to three casinos should be built “downstate,” an area that includes Westchester County, Long Island and New York City.
Proposals must be approved by a local community advisory committee, which includes the governor, mayor, local state senator and assembly member, district president, and local city councilman. The New York Gambling Commission would have final approval.
Trump Golf Links at Ferry Point is built on more than 500 acres of a former landfill owned and managed by the city’s Parks Authority. Trump leases the land and would sublease it to Bally’s.
It is one of the former president’s 15 golf courses. Prices have lost over $300 million over the past two decades.
Bally’s eventually wants to take over the entire property and open up much of it as public green space, the source familiar with the sublease said.
“We’re incredibly excited at the prospect of bringing Bally’s community-centric approach to gaming and entertainment to the Bronx,” a casino spokesperson told Insider.
“At Bally’s, we start with the assumption that community leaders know what is best for their community,” the spokesman said, adding that discussions with “key figures in civil society” have already begun.
One of those leaders is local city councilman Marjorie Velazquez, who welcomed the prospect of bringing jobs to her neighborhood.
“I think there is an exciting opportunity to reinvent what exists in this space,” she said in a statement. “We need more public green spaces in the Bronx, we need housing and jobs. Any project I would consider would need to provide a tangible benefit to my community, specifically local hiring and ensuring quality union jobs.”
The conspiracy is also in the congressional district of Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who has frequently closed horns with Trump. Her office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Trump’s own foray into the casino business ended in bankruptcy – but with millions in profits, the New York Times reported in 2016.
The Trump Organization and the City Parks Department did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
