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A southern Brooklyn neighborhood board voted towards altering land use guidelines for the proposed Coney Island on line casino on Wednesday night time within the venture’s newest setback.
Neighborhood Board 13 voted 24-11 to disclaim builders’ software to shut a part of Bowery Road and buy air rights above current buildings within the nabe to make manner for the ability, dubbed “The Coney.” Eight board members abstained from voting, and three recused themselves from the proceedings.
Although the board’s vote is strictly advisory and the land use software isn’t instantly tied to The Coney’s push to get a state gaming license, public approval does play a big half in who will obtain these licenses — and Coney Islanders have sturdy emotions on all sides.
On the Jan. 22 board assembly, locals packed the room to capability, many waving indicators supplied by opposing organizers: “Stop the Phoney” and “No no no casino in Coney Island” for these towards the venture; “Yes to Jobs!” and “Build it Now!” for these in favor.
Supporters of the on line casino on the Jan. 22 assembly. Picture courtesy of Eric Koch/The Coney
The Coney, as builders envision it now, could be a 1,431,730-square-foot facility stretching throughout a number of blocks close to Stillwell Avenue and West twelfth Road, constructed up above current buildings and linked by enclosed “sky bridges.”
The group behind the on line casino, headed by Joe Sitt’s Thor Equities, has promised it could convey jobs and year-round financial alternative to the nabe, and mentioned this month it could create a $200 million public belief fund if the on line casino is constructed.
Some Coney Islanders mentioned Wednesday that the neighborhood may use all the assistance it could possibly get.
“My ‘yes’ to The Coney is for the investments in our community,” mentioned resident Joseph Watson. “I’m talking about the kids and the young men and women that live in NYCHA, that are renters, OK, they’re not homeowners. These people, my people, we need an opportunity.”
Even when the roles supplied by the on line casino are “small,” he mentioned, they could possibly be the possibility locals have to get a step up.
“We do know that they’re speaking about union jobs,” Watson mentioned. “Even if they weren’t, the income that they’re making is already above what they’re making in the household already. There’s so many people here that are living below poverty.”
A rendering of The Coney and the boardwalk. Picture courtesy of The Coney
Others mentioned that even when Coney Island is struggling, the on line casino isn’t what it wants.
Patrick Wall, govt director of Coney Island USA, mentioned his enterprise has been “trying to survive” for years, and that he would like to see new jobs within the neighborhood.
“This casino is not that,” he mentioned. “We’re asking for a giant fort to come and plop down on top of our entire amusement district across three blocks. That’s crazy! It’s going to keep people locked in, they’ve got food, they’ve got accommodations, they’ve got entertainment. They’re never going to come outside, they’re never going to give us money.”
Coney Island USA pupil Jake Turner agreed.
“Big corporations see Coney Island not as a community, but a commodity,” he mentioned. “A place they can extract wealth from with no regard for the people who live here.”
Neighborhood Board member Yelena Makhnin recalled visiting Coney Island along with her household simply days after she moved to the U.S. from the Soviet Union in 1992. The primary images she took within the U.S., she mentioned, had been of her youngsters subsequent to the Surprise Wheel.
Opponents of the proposed on line casino at a Neighborhood Board 13 assembly on Jan. 9. Picture by Erica Value
Makhnin mentioned The Coney’s guarantees weren’t sufficient, since Neighborhood Advantages Agreements usually are not legally enforceable.
“Until I see a binding document, it’s still a promise,” she mentioned.
Sheila Smalls, a fellow board member, urged her colleagues to suppose in another way. On the west facet of Coney Island, the place Smalls lives, nearly every part residents used to take pleasure in is gone, she mentioned — eating places, pharmacies, film theaters.
“All of these things now are a thing of the past,” she mentioned. “Even this community board has to find a place for us to have meetings, because we don’t have a place.”
Different initiatives, like rezonings and a brand new shelter, have gone ahead despite the fact that the neighborhood voted towards them, Smalls mentioned.
Prime, a rendering of the on line casino if the land use software is accredited. Backside, the on line casino if constructed with current land use rules. Renderings courtesy of FXCollaborative/New York Metropolis Planning
“So please, listen up, everybody has an opinion…if we have an olive branch, reach out and see what it’s about before you say no,” she mentioned. “When you say no, you’re closing the door on everything, and I don’t see any other money coming from anywhere else.”
The appliance will subsequent go earlier than the Brooklyn Borough President, then the Metropolis Planning Fee, then the Metropolis Council, which can make the ultimate choice to approve or deny.
In an announcement, The Coney thanked its supporters, and emphasised that the neighborhood board vote is not going to instantly influence whether or not or not the on line casino will get constructed — simply what it’ll seem like if it does. If the land use software is denied, however The Coney will get a state gaming license, the on line casino buildings could be shorter and constructed on separate tons, with out the sky bridges.
“It is disappointing that some prominent members of the community have [misled] others into thinking this ULURP process is a de facto vote on whether or not this project can move forward,” a on line casino rep mentioned. “As the outright owners of the fully developable lots, The Coney remains the bid most poised to put shovels in the ground on day one to kickstart what will be an economic revival for Coney Island and Southern Brooklyn.”
