QNS.com is reporting: Flushing’s Metropolitan Park casino proposal gets City Planning Commission green light
I asked an AI to help me make heads of tales of what that means as I was getting confused. Per the AI:
AI: Steve Cohen’s dream of turning the Citi Field parking lot into a Hard Rock-powered casino just got a little closer to reality.
Me here: Whew, the QNS headline made me think it was already done. OK AI keep going….
AI: The City Planning Commission voted overwhelmingly (9-1, with one abstention) to approve zoning amendments for the $8 billion Metropolitan Park project. The proposal would transform the 50-acre parking lot into a full-fledged entertainment complex, complete with a casino, a public park, retail shops, a Taste of Queens food hall, and upgrades to local infrastructure.
This is the first binding vote the project has received in the ULURP process, though it still needs to clear the City Council and Mayor’s office.
Me:. Bloomberg reported in 2021: Mets Owner Steve Cohen Gives $1.5 Million for Eric Adams’s NYC Mayoral Bid
I will let you form your own opinion on how the Mayor is gonna vote.
AI: More importantly, the entire plan hinges on winning one of the three downstate casino licenses. With two licenses likely going to existing racinos, Cohen and Hard Rock are facing stiff competition from bids in Times Square, Hudson Yards, Coney Island, and even the former Trump Links golf course in the Bronx.
Metropolitan Park officials are, of course, thrilled, with spokesperson Karl Rickett saying the vote moves them “one step closer to becoming a reality.” But as City Planning Commission Chair Dan Garodnick pointed out, this vote only addresses land use—it doesn’t mean the casino is a done deal. Until Cohen and Hard Rock secure a gaming license, it’s still a high-stakes gamble.
Me: I asked the AI, “Can you explain to the people why this is parkland.”
The AI replied at length below.
AI: The 50-acre parking lot west of Citi Field is legally parkland. It all goes back to Robert Moses and some old-school political maneuvering.
The History Lesson
Back in the 1930s and ’40s, Robert Moses, New York’s legendary (and infamous) master planner, built what we now know as Flushing Meadows-Corona Park for the 1939 World’s Fair. Then, in the ’60s, he did it again for the 1964-65 World’s Fair, expanding the park and reshaping the area.
When Shea Stadium was built in the early ’60s, the land underneath it—along with the parking lots—was designated as parkland. Why? Because technically, Moses took land from the park to build the stadium and its parking, but legally it remained part of Flushing Meadows-Corona Park. Shea may have been the home of the Mets, but the city never officially reclassified the land—it was just leased for stadium use.
Fast forward to the 2000s, and when Citi Field was built right next door, the same legal framework applied: Citi Field and its surrounding parking lots were still considered parkland.
Why Does This Matter?
Because it’s still legally designated parkland, Steve Cohen and Hard Rock can’t just slap a casino there without the city declassifying the land through official zoning changes and approvals. That’s why this project needs a zoning amendment and why the City Planning Commission just voted on it.
Basically, if Cohen wants to turn a so-called “park” into an entertainment complex, the city and state have to officially say, “Okay, it’s not parkland anymore.”
Me: Look, if Mr. Cohen wants to build a casino, I encourage him to buy some land and apply for a casino. While I personally don’t think casinos help neighborhoods – see Atlantic City if you need a case study – Mr. Cohen is free to go into whatever business he wants.
If Mr. Cohen is true that he just wants the area to look nicer, perhaps he could offer to build some sort of covered parking area, with a park on top.
As for the notion of handing parkland over to a billionaire? I propose we hand over Central Park south of 63rd street to Donald Trump to build a casino. That’s not a crazy idea is it?
I propose Prospect Park be handed over to Michael Bloomberg, to build a casino.
I propose we take Brooklyn Bridge Park and hand it over to some Saudi Investors, so they can build a casino.
I propose we take your home, knock it down, and hand it over to Elon Musk so he can build a casino.
Alternate Idea: A compromise!
Since it seems Mr. Cohen thinks the are would be improved by a casino and a food market and the other stuff – why don’t we knock down Citi Field? We could put the casino there (on the leased land). I don’t see any issue with that. The people who live in the affordable housing next to the new soccer stadium will love it.
The Mets can find somewhere else to play. I think my compromise makes a lot of sense. Mr. Cohen gets what he wants, the parkland stays as is, and the neighborhood gets ostensibly better. I’m confident that the Mets would have no trouble finding a new location to take them in.
