Wynn New York City Casino Plan Faces Pushback From Community Board

Wynn New York City casino plan rejected by community board

Associates faces opposition to its latest Hudson Yards expansion plan, which calls for significantly fewer residential units than originally planned.

Last month, updated scope for the $12 billion project called Hudson Yards West was revealed. The development is located on 13 acres between West 30th and 33rd Streets and 11th and 12th Avenues.

Renderings from March showed two 80-story skyscrapers surrounded by several other smaller towers and a 5.6-acre park leading to the Javits Center. About half of the $12 billion investment will be used to build an integrated resort casino called Wynn New York City, if Wynn Resorts obtains a casino license from the New York Gaming Facilities Location Commission.

One of the skyscrapers will house the Wynn Casino and its 1,750 hotel rooms, as well as typical integrated resort facilities such as numerous restaurants and bars, retail stores, entertainment spaces, conference facilities, spas and swimming pools, and wellness services.

Other buildings will house a 750-seat public school, a day care center and a community centre. In addition, more than 1,500 private homes are included in the design, including 324 affordable homes.

Community Dispute

Associated Companies’ latest project scope for Hudson Yards West is facing opposition from Manhattan’s Community Board 4.

The board represents the West Side neighborhoods of Chelsea, Clinton and Hell's Kitchen and is one of twelve community boards in Manhattan. Each Community Board is made up of 50 volunteers who provide advisory services to the City.

CB4 members said the plans represent a significant change from the Hudson Yards West project adopted in 2009, when billionaire Stephen Ross' real estate company planned to build a nearly 1,000-acre development on a proposed Long Island Rail Road storage site. 30 acre complex.

A statement asked: "Why should communities around New York City work with the real estate industry and city government to respond to and agree to zoning changes with detailed site plans and points of agreement that can be waived later?" via CB4. The council added that it was "unable to support the proposed project's substantial change from residential use to commercial use surrounding the casino."

In 2009, Hudson Yards West had more than 5,700 residential units.

Friends of the High Line, a nonprofit that oversees all aspects of public parking at the High Line in partnership with the New York City Parks Department, has also raised questions about changes to the West End of Hudson Yards. The community group said the various buildings and two skyscrapers would "compromise the light and air of the park, as well as the important visual axis into the city, and will unnecessarily impact and overwhelm the park's footprint."

“This is not an insignificant part of the park,” said Alan van Capelle, executive director of Friends of the High Line. "That's 20 percent of it. They're proposing the same square footage, but cramming in three giant towers with a huge podium that would engulf the entire area and isolate it from the rest of Manhattan."

Project Discussion

In response to the community board's statement, representatives said the company looks forward to continuing conversations with community members about Hudson Yards West.

"We look forward to continuing to work with local community stakeholders as part of the urban land use process for the undeveloped station," a press release said. "The new Western Yards scheme aims to create further direct employment opportunities and increase the number of direct jobs without adding Maximizing revenue and benefits for the city and state without increasing density. The proposal maintains previous commitments, including affordable housing and schools, while also improving connectivity to Manhattan’s West Side through 5.6 acres of contiguous open green space.”

The $12 billion plan is forecast to create 35,000 construction jobs. The casino company said the Wynn segment will require about 5,000 permanent employees.