The first public hearing for MGM Empire City brought out strong language and deep resentment in stakeholder comments.
On Monday evening the downstate New York casino race entered a new phase as local residents and representatives gathered in the Grinton I Will Public Library in Yonkers for the first public hearing on the MGM Empire City proposal.
This was the first of a minimum of two mandated hearings before the project’s community advisory committee (CAC) can hold a binding vote on whether the bid can advance for further consideration. The next hearing is set for 16 September at Yonkers Montessori Academy. Four of the five committee members must vote in favour of Empire City for it to advance.
MGM was the first of the eight total New York bidders to field a CAC public hearing. The next applicant scheduled is Caesars Times Square, which will host its first hearing on Wednesday.
The company is proposing a sweeping $2.3 billion renovation and expansion of its existing facility, the former Yonkers Raceway. The property is known as a “racino”, meaning it features both a racetrack and gambling offerings, in this case video lottery terminals (VLT). If approved for a licence, Empire City would eschew its VLTs and become a full Las Vegas-style Class III casino.
Several dozen speakers gave opinions about the project on Monday and the dominant theme is one that has been applied to many major casino expansions across the US in recent years: labour and business leaders want the project while local residents largely do not.
Lone public official cautious on MGM Empire City
As is typical for such meetings, legislators and elected officials were given first priority to speak. The only one to do so was David Tubiolo, Westchester County legislator for District 14, which includes Yonkers.
Tubiolo voiced caution for the project and did not endorse it.
Last night, I expressed the concerns of our community at the MGM Public Hearing regarding the expansion and renovations that are planned for Empire City Casino. pic.twitter.com/rlzTJ26mWv
— David Tubiolo (@davidjtubiolo) August 12, 2025
“This project will no doubt bring with it an increase in traffic, an increase in noise and an increased need for emergency and first responder services,” Tubiolo said.
Tubiolo pointed to concerns about the area’s “flood-prone streets”, which were mentioned by others as well. He asserted that his community needs commitments from the company that “the strains on our emergency services and infrastructure” will not become too burdensome.
“We are good neighbours – treat us as such,” Tubiolo said. “Help us get to yes.”
About halfway through the meeting, CAC chair James Cavanaugh noted that several high-ranking local and state officials were present. However, none other than Tubiolo opted to speak.
Union, business leaders bullish on NY casino project
A good chunk of the public support for all of the eight bids has come from union and labour officials. All bidders have pledged thousands of union construction jobs, meaning workers will benefit irrespective of which projects are chosen.
“Let’s not get stuck debating hypothetical problems,” said Armando Moreno, a rep for the United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners of America. “Let’s focus on real tangible benefits this project brings.”
Local and small business leaders have also been staunch supporters of most bids, with MGM Empire City being no exception. Lenny Caro, president of the Yonkers Chamber of Commerce, spoke briefly, but with a clear message: “We support this 100%.”
In addition to increased AIM, I am advocating for Yonkers’ MGM Empire City Casino to be awarded one
of the three remaining full gaming casino licenses. In Yonkers alone, Empire City Casino has brought
in $4 billion to offset the costs of education in NY since VLT’s inception. pic.twitter.com/3xquAC5vLs— Mayor Mike Spano (@MayorMikeSpano) February 15, 2023
Opponents: ‘We all know this is gonna happen’
With few exceptions, the speakers who identified as local residents were staunchly opposed. One woman in particular, a retired city employee named Margaret, was not shy in addressing what she saw as an elephant in the room.
“Some people may not like what I’m going to say: We all know this is gonna happen,” she said. “The fact that we are here begging MGM, a multimillion-dollar international corporation, for a few lousy concessions is a disgrace. They should have been begging us with concessions to come here.”
Her comments touch on a common theme among speakers: MGM Empire City and Resorts World NYC seem likely to be licensed because of their speed-to-market advantage and existing relationship with the state.
MGM has, in its own economic projections, said that Empire City will be forced into closure if it is not chosen for a licence. It cannot survive, MGM said, if there are three additional commercial licensees nearby. Residents were not pleased with framing that implies a threat seeking approval.
Kisha Skipper, president of the Yonkers NAACP branch, said that Assemblyman Gary Pretlow told her directly years ago that he was opposed to a full-scale Yonkers casino. That sentiment apparently changed somewhere along the line, she said.
Another local woman was especially descriptive in her assessment of the situation:
“This is either the renaissance of Yonkers or the rape of Yonkers. I want to see the renaissance and we need the leadership of everybody in Yonkers to bring everybody up so we can be an example for the nation of what could be done.”
