Zoning Roadblock Stalls Bally’s Casino in the Bronx

Bally’s has hit a wall in its push to bring a casino to the Bronx. New York City Council blocked the key zoning amendments the company needed to move forward with its $4 billion casino plan at Ferry Point. That vote has stalled the project—at least for now.

Good to know

• New York City Council voted 29-9 against zoning changes for the Bally’s Bronx project.
• Kristy Marmorato, who represents the area, strongly opposed the casino plan.
• Bally’s needs zoning approval to stay in the race for one of three downstate licenses.

The vote outcome was largely shaped by a long-standing practice in city politics known as “member deference.” In land-use matters, Council members usually support the decision of the representative whose district is directly affected. In this case, Kristy Marmorato stood firmly against the plan. She cited strong pushback from the local community and asked her colleagues to vote no. Speaker Adrienne Adams and others followed her lead.

At the heart of the issue was Bally’s request to reclassify land currently zoned as parkland. The company hoped to remove that label from the existing golf course at Ferry Point and open the door for mixed-use development. Without those changes, the site remains off-limits for casino construction.

Bally’s Chair Soo Kim did not hold back after the vote. He said the company had put in a lot of effort and had responded to what was expected, but the expectations kept changing. “The vote today was not a rejection of Bally’s. It was a rejection of the idea that a local representative could take ‘yes’ for an answer and be allowed to lead,” Kim said.

For now, the Council’s decision blocks Bally’s from staying competitive in the race for a downstate casino license. New York State plans to issue three licenses, and Bally’s was hoping the Bronx project would secure one of them. Instead, the company now finds itself trailing behind seven other bidders.

The path forward is unclear. Bally’s could try to appeal or rework the proposal, but without local backing, that may not lead anywhere. Meanwhile, the other contenders move ahead in what has become one of the most watched casino licensing battles in the country.

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