I’m not a big fan of NIMBY groups as a whole, but the article also mentions this now:
Josh Vlasto, a spokesperson for the group, then shared an updated statement that said, “The latest plans appear to address many of our concerns related to the impacts on the High Line, enhanced public space, and a much needed increase in affordable housing.”
It added, “However, the devil is in the details.”
The tower is definitely a loss, it was very atypical for a NYC skyscraper. And also, what better place to have a casino/ hotel than next to the city’s largest conference center?
If it’s possible to at least get 2 of the 3 proposed buildings off the ground, perhaps there’d be enough interest for a potential client to develop the third…? They don’t need a casino license to develop (unless the entire development was 100% contingent on the license)
The alternate Site C scheme replaces the resort tower and podium with 3 buildings, a resi, a hotel, and an office tower. While they could build the residential building out of the 3, they would need to find tenants for the hotel tower and the office tower.
The original Site C scheme was catered only to if they had gotten the gaming license (which is why they made an alternate plan for that site), while the overall develoment of Phase II was not necessarily dependent on the license, it was their plan to use the license to help build the billion dollar Phase II platform, which still needs to be built to cover 2/3rd of the site.
I remain optimistic that the original design and scale of the towers can be preserved. Repurposing the casino tower into a high-end residential, hotel, or mixed-use space could provide the financial justification needed to move forward without compromising the skyline impact.
They can’t use the resort tower/podium anymore, it is zoned differently than the alternate scheme, which is zoned appropriately for the condition that will be moving forward.
Also the cost of the initial scheme has no bearing on whether the project moves forward or not, so repurposing an old design wouldn’t do anything.
No, but a single iconic building of that taste won’t do harm.
The Wynn tower would’ve been a huge attraction for the region, it was probably the biggest of the license bids. Lots of jobs, nearby convention center, proximity to a business hub and public transport - it’ll attract tourism and business commuters en masse.
@ElonMusk they won’t. There is a residential plan B design they’ve made, and they’ll probably come down to it, perhaps after some tweaks.
