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Wall Street Experts Guess About New York Casino Licenses
New York State is definitely taking its time for the issuance of the three downstate casino licenses. During that time, many experts, analysts, and investors have the opportunity to speculate about the topic and its details. This was the case at a recent gambling conference in Atlantic City where Wall Street experts raised questions about how long the process will take.

The issuance of the three available licenses for the downstate region has been in the works for a while now. Lastly, the state kicked off a process for Request for Applications which is led by the Gaming Facility Location Board, which will now review bids from third-party candidates. It is expected that the licenses will be announced by the end of this year.

- It Will be Some Time

In a recent conference, Wall Street investors say the downstate process will be a drawn-out one. Duane Bouligny, managing director of Wells Fargo Bank Security noted that the issuance will take some time, as the who process includes first awarding a bid, then the state going through the process of selecting winners and finally building the new casinos.

Mr. Bouligny and others from the panel predict that it could be three or four years before a full-scale commercial casino makes its debut in New York City. Meanwhile, a brand-new gaming amenity built from the ground might not come to fruition until 2030. Mr. Bouligny also noted that currently many of the criteria for the winning bids are unknown.

Currently, it is believed that two existing gaming amenities in New York City lead the race for two of the available licenses, thus potentially expanding to full-scale ones, and doing it quickly. The favourites are MGM Resorts International’s Empire City Casino in Yonkers and Genting Group’s Resort World New York City at the Aqueduct Racetrack in Queens.

With the two casinos being almost nailed on to receive two of the licenses, it is essentially a battle for the third for the rest of the interested parties. Companies and coalitions which have already submitted proposals include Caesars Entertainment, Mohegan Gaming, Hard Rock International, Bally’s Corp., Wynn Resorts, Saratoga Casino Holdings and Las Vegas Sands.

- Locals’ Vote Will Have a Say

Mohit Kansal, managing director for Clairvest Group, said local discontent would make the construction of a brand-new property almost impossible. For instance, Hofstra University in Long Island has opposed Las Vegas Sands’ bid to bring a casino to Nassau County. Meanwhile, a Times Square coalition has opposed Caesars Entertainment’s bid for a Midtown gaming establishment.

Lastly, Jordan Bender, a senior equity research analyst at JMP Securities commented if the state wanted quick tax revenue, then it would opt for the existing gaming facilities at Yonkers and Queens. He believes this way the process would take around a year to expand the existing ones while they continue to run and generate tax money for the state’s budget.