The awarding of the three remaining casino licenses for downstate New York got a step closer to reality after the state Gaming Commission appointed the first three members of the Gaming Facility Location Board.
This powerful body, due to include five individuals once completed, is tasked with analyzing proposals for the casinos: where they should be built and what they should look like.
The three appointees come from a range of backgrounds.
Quenia Abreu is the CEO and president of the New York Women’s Chamber of Commerce; New York University law Professor Vicki Been was deputy mayor of New York and has served as commissioner of the City’s Department of Housing Preservation and Development; and Stuart Rabinowitz formerly served as president of Hofstra University in Long Island.
The time at which the final two members of the Gaming Facility Location Board are to be appointed remains uncertain.
At the appointment meeting, Gaming Commission Chair Brian O’Dwyer assured the public that the apointees, and the body they comprise, will be able to work without interference from any third parties.
O’Dwyer commented: “This is not preconceived. It is their job to make an independent decision as to the appropirateness of the licenses.”
Among the requirements taken into consideration when appointing the five-person board were experience in finance and economics and “no less” than ten years working in fiscal matters.
Ethical matters were also taken into consideration. No one is allowed any financial interest in “any gaming activities” such as “horse racing, lottery or gambling.”
The future casinos date back to a voter-approved consistutional amendment from 2013, which opened the door to seven casinos being constructed in the Empire State. The first four were limited to upstate, but the final three are south, in the environs of New York City. Quite possibly, in the heart of Manhattan, if the board meets such a proposal and deems it so.
