
Tioga Downs owner Jeff Gural is among individuals who have been approached by state investigators questions that are asking New York’s casino licensing process.
The New York state attorney general’s workplace has apparently exposed an inquiry into exactly how the three internet sites that were recommended by the Gaming Facility Location Board were opted for, and whether the bidding process as a whole had been fair.
In accordance with reports that are various investigators for New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman have actually met with some associated with the bidders who were part of the casino selection procedure, apparently to analyze whether conflicts of great interest or other problems were present during the selection.
According up to a report by Central New York Media, the three bidders that are winning had ties to Taft, Stettinius & Hollister.
That firm merged with attorney Shefsky & Froelich last 12 months, after which it became the lead gambling consultant for the location board. In total, five of the 16 casino bids mentioned ties to the companies as a conflict that is potential of.
Gural Says Investigators Approached Him About Process
According to Tioga Downs owner Jeff Gural, he has spoken to investigators about the bidding process. But though Gural has previously complained in regards to the Southern Tier being passed over and has now lobbied for his proposed casino to obtain a 2nd look, he claims he wasn’t trying to allege any illegal activity into the process.
‘we didn’t get in touch with the AG,’ Gural said. ‘It had not been my intent to whine.’
Gural stated that while he told investigators that he didn’t believe any laws have been broken during the putting in a bid process, he did have questions about the potential conflict of interest triggered by a winning bidder’s connections compared to that casino consulting firm, something he feels might not have been reasonable.
James Featherstonhaugh, an Albany lobbyist who worked with two bidders that are losing also said that state investigators had contacted his clients in recent weeks. However, he offered reviews that were even softer than those of Gural, saying that he wasn’t accusing the location board of any impropriety while he was disappointed in the results.
‘We thought that the process ended up being managed fairly and skillfully,’ Featherstonhaugh told this new York instances. ‘We desire we had won. But we didn’t.’
Location Board Says Process Was Fair and Clear
According to location board spokesperson Lee Park, Taft’s role along the way was only to compile submitted materials into more summaries that are easily comparable board members can use.
‘Taft had no direct input into decision-making of the board people,’ Park said month that is last.
In a declaration issues Monday, Park reiterated that the method ended up being fair and followed the principles established by New York’s casino legislation.
‘The casino process that is sitting followed the provisions of the Upstate ny Gaming Economic Development Act, which called for unprecedented transparency,’ Park said. ‘All material regarding the process, including legally required disclosures of potential disputes of interest, are available on our webpage for anyone to examine.’
The investigation comes due to the fact location board is planning to provide a final report on the three sites chosen for gambling enterprises on Friday. On that day, the board can also be expected to think about a formal request for allowing brand new proposals from the Southern Tier region, possibly allowing a fourth unused casino license become awarded to a project here.
At the moment, the three recommended casino projects in upstate New York include Montreign Resort and Casino in Thompson (located in the Catskills), Rivers Casino and Resort in Schenectady, and Lago Resort Casino in Tyre, near the Finger Lakes.
Revel Sold To Florida Billionaire Straub For $82 Million
Back through the dead: Glenn Straub finally gets their fingers in the shuttered Revel casino resort, which he plans to make into a casino-cum-center dedicated to life extension technology. (Image: wsj.com)
Sold, to the eccentric Florida billionaire in the row that is front one gigantic, doomed casino resort that leaks $2 million per week. Stunning views regarding the coastline.
Yes, after months of tortuous wrangling that is legal property developer Glenn Straub has finally got his mitts regarding the stricken Revel Casino Resort in Atlantic City. He shall spend $82 million for the building, a fraction of the $2.4 billion it cost to build.
His plans? Well, Revel will NOT become an elite university in which the brightest minds on the planet can wander down and up the boardwalk ruminating on answers to global problems, such as ‘famine, cancer and nuclear waste storage,’ as Straub previously proposed.
Instead, it will become some sort of weird center specialized in the quest for eternal youth, or ‘life-extension science,’ to utilize the terminology that is preferred. We imagine that is very big in Florida.
Oh, and a casino.
Life Extension for Revel
Yes, despite, previous statements that he dislikes the very notion of Atlantic City as being a casino town and that he would feel uncomfortable about profiting from gambling (although, given Revel’s history, there would seem to be little chance of that), Straub has tantalizingly revealed that the unsuccessful casino property will reopen as a casino. Albeit a strange one. This week: ‘It’s a shame perhaps not to have some entertainment. after all, as he explained to Bloomberg’
‘ I think we can help a large amount of people,’ added Straub of Revel’s forthcoming life-extension facilities. ‘We’ll offer you a week of knowledge and perhaps extend your daily life.’
A factor that could have been instrumental in Straub compromising his convictions about casinos could be the crippling energy bill that’s tagged onto Revel. While Straub was in fact the initial ‘stalking horse’ in Revel’s bankruptcy auction, establishing the beds base bid at $90 million, the auction ended up being ultimately won by the company that is canadian Asset Management, having a bid of $110 million.
Energy Bills from Hell
But Brookfield balked and bolted when it saw the energy that is annual of $36 million. In contrast, the Borgata, which has doubly many resort rooms and a bigger casino floor, paid $11.7 million last year in energy costs.
The property gets its energy from a plant that is adjacent owned by ACR Partners LLC, that was built specifically for that purpose and with Revel is its sole customer. Revel AC Inc began building the power plant whenever work began on the property, in 2008.
When the company went out of money, however, the plant was taken over by ACR, which demanded a 15 per cent return on its equity into the first five years and 18 % from then on. Revel’s obligations to ACR constitute equity payments totaling $20.1 million annually, plus $4 million for operations and maintenance.
Resorts Casino Hotel Joins New Jersey Online Gambling Fray
Resorts will become the casino that is fifth in Atlantic City to start an on line gambling site in the state of New Jersey. (Image: Donald Kravitz/Getty Photos)
Resorts Casino Hotel may rank last among the remaining Atlantic City gambling enterprises in terms of income, but that’s not stopping them from jumping directly into the online gambling world.
This week, Resorts will end up the fifth Atlantic City casino company to offer gambling that is online the state of New Jersey. With a little fortune, they could even be joined by an extremely powerful partner into the days or months in the future.
Resorts will end their testing that is five-day period Wednesday, the second of two full times of procedure that follow three partial days of gaming.
Which means the casino’s online gambling sites is going to be completely operational on Thursday, just a week Resorts received their transactional waiver from the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement (DGE).
Resorts Boasts Wide Variety of Casino Games, No Poker at Launch
‘As New Jersey’s first casino destination, Resorts is committed to delivering the best-in-class online video gaming experience in the Garden State by partnering with gaming leaders, including SNG Interactive, which houses Sportech and NYX Gaming Group,’ said Mark Giannantonio, CEO and president of Resorts Casino resort.
‘With SNG’s versatile gaming casino-bonus-free-money.com solutions and exclusive game content, we’re excited to introduce European countries’s industry-leading casino slots and table games towards the United States market for the best online user experience.’
Resorts joins the Borgata, Golden Nugget, Tropicana and Caesars Entertainment in providing casinos that are online New Jersey. Right now, just the Borgata (partnered with partypoker) and Caesars (with 888 Holdings) offer online poker.
That’s not something that Resorts can boast appropriate from the gate. But, they truly are more likely to enter cyberspace poker landscape sooner rather than later on. Resorts has a partnership that is existing with the Rational Group, the parent company of PokerStars and Full Tilt that is now owned by Amaya Gaming.
While Amaya’s certification application has been delayed, there have been indications that the business could gain a New Jersey permit soon, which may likely make Resorts a solid competitor within the on-line poker sphere.
PokerStars, Comprehensive Tilt Could Provide Games if Licensed
‘Resorts has built a relationship that is exclusive PokerStars and Full Tilt Poker, two of the most popular and effective online gaming brands on earth,’ reads an FAQ page for Resorts. ‘This means Resorts will be supplying New Jersey with the best online casino and poker sites with the industry’s best products.’
For now, though, the focus will be on supplying casino services and products. According to Resorts, their site will ‘feature the largest selection of casino slots and dining table games in the state of New Jersey in addition to exclusive games and highly coveted content which can be unavailable elsewhere.’
Resorts Casino Hotel was the casino that is first in Atlantic City, opening in 1978. Resorts had been a heavy contributor to the campaign to legalize gambling in New Jersey, supporting the referendum on the issue that ended up being passed by state voters in 1976.
Resorts will be entering a gambling that is online in New Jersey that has been growing in recent months. In January, the state’s online gambling sites brought in $11.6 million, up over 22 per cent when comparing to equivalent month year that is last.
The only part of the state’s Internet gambling framework that generally seems to be struggling is online poker, which could receive a major boost if PokerStars is permitted to start operations in partnership with Resorts.