Bally’s Pays Over US$100M for Trump Golf Links Lease

Bally’s has expressed affinity to acquire one of the three downstate casino licenses in New York and the corporation is moving quick to bolster its chances. Recently, the gambling company inked a deal to acquire Trump Golf Links at Ferry Points, as part of its casino bid. It was reported that the operator agreed to pay US$100 upfront for the lease of the property.

The Empire State is in the process of issuing the three full-scale casino licenses and Bally’s is one of the applicants. This January, the Gaming Facility Location Board opened Request for Applications, allowing companies and their partners to submit their bids for casino projects for review. After a decision, the proposals will be sent to the NYS Gaming Commission for a final say.

Running Out of Time

Latest reports from the industry confirm that the gaming firm has agreed to a deal worth at least US$100 million for the lease of Trump Gold Links at Ferry Point in The Bronx. The company’s idea is to build a casino resort on 17 of the 300 acres of the property. Approximately 10 acres will be used for the gaming portion with the rest being used for green space and workers’ housing.

Previously, the gambling leader shared some details of its project for The Bronx. It projected that the casino resort would 15,000 construction jobs, and more than 3,500 permanent, high-paying, union jobs with salaries starting from US$70,000, complemented by great benefits and retirement, said the source. However, it needs one of the licenses for this to become a reality.

Reports indicated that Eric Trump, son of the former U.S. president, Donald Trump, led the negotiations with the company for the US$100 million deal. It is believed that he bargained up to the last moment with the firm for extra money. But there were also concerns that if the negotiations continued another week or two, the deal may have not materialized.

Both sides were in a hurry as Bally’s needs a physical location for its proposed NY casino locations. And in order to put an official bid for a license, the group needs to first secure the rights to the land it plans to put the casino on. Sources claim that if the deal had not been agreed upon now, the process to eventually gain access to the golf course would have taken months.

Launching Free-to-Ride Bus

But that is not all from the company in order to enhance its chances of landing a license, as it wants to win over the residents of The Bronx. On October 1, 2023, the gambling corporation launched a free-to-ride bus for patrons in the area. The new bus service is now running and will be conducting a 10-stop route from Mondays through Fridays from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.

Naturally, the golf course will serve as one of the stops in the 30-minute route of the bus. According to the Bronx Times, the other nine stops will include seven along East Tremont Avenue that connects Throggs Neck with the Westchester Square subway stop. Another two will be along the Hutchinson River Parkway and another at Ferry Point Park.

Source: Lucas, Grant “Needing To Move Quick, Bally’s Agrees To Pay Upward Of $100 Million For Trump Golf Links Lease” PlayNY, October 2, 2023