Strip of vacant land that is the proposed site for the Sterling Forest Resort hotel and casino / Photo by Geoff Welch
As the tick tock of the casino review clock winds down to a possible town vote on the issue Monday, Town of Tuxedo residents met Wednesday night to discuss the Sterling Forest Resort proposal.
The gathering of Tuxedo residents took place at the Long Meadow Road firehouse and reflected a general divide on the issue — depending on the perspective, a resort casino could cause the verdant woods of Sterling Forest to rain manna for the fair folks in these parts – or disrupt a semi-rural way of life with multinational corporation big businesss.
@tuxedochamber @Sloatsburgny Perfect for all in surrounding area – been to meetings and have seen plans and they are stellar.
— sandra hebner (@sandiehebner) May 8, 2014
Area business owners appear to be mostly cautiously optimistic about the possible economic benefits the casino and resort might have while many residents believe the development does not fit with a parklands community, and represents an actual threat to the environment and area watershed.
@tuxedochamber @Sloatsburgny I sent a petition with over 400 signatures against to you.. Town Bd County Exec — Maureen Russo (@msmoe5555) May 7, 2014
If approved, the nearly 1 million square foot Sterling Forest Resort would be built on a 238-acre site off Route 17A that includes the current location of the Tuxedo Ridge Ski Center and Renaissance Faire village.
@tuxedochamber @Sloatsburgny as 15 year vet vendor@nyrf I’m very concerned abouth casino. Esp since my booth would b demoed according 2 plan
— EmporiumLeathers (@EmporiumLeather) May 6, 2014
Town of Tuxedo Supervisor Mike Rost has invited Tuxedo businesses and residents to send comments to the town at resorts@tuxedogov.org — the deadline to receive comments has been set for Friday, May 9. The Town of Tuxedo board is tentatively scheduled to give its recommendation on the Genting proposal at the Monday, May 12 town board meeting.
“We’ve got to get some businesses in Tuxedo,” Rost was quoted as saying in a recent Wall Street Journal article on New York state casino applications. Rost believes the development could provide a positive impact on the Tuxedo economy and infuse much-needed taxes. Tuxedo is currently nearly $1 million dollars in debt, with some of that shortfall caused by overdue and anticipated FEMA reimbursement money. TPFYI.com, a local website that covers Tuxedo community life, stated that the town council said that “contributions to the State Retirement Fund and decreased revenues were also big factors in the deficit.”
Architectural rendering of the how Sterling Forest Resort in Tuxedo, NY would look. Design elements mimic certain features of Tuxedo Park homes.
Although initially envisioned as a means to possibly economically revitalize upstate New York state, especially the Catskills region, 5 out of the 22 applications submitted to the NY Gaming Commision involve proposals for casino developments in Orange County. Both the Genting Group proposal at Tuxedo Ridge and Caesars Entertainment and Flaum Management Group plans, if adopted by NY Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s independent Gaming Commission, are slated for communities adjacent to Rockland County.
@tuxedochamber @Sloatsburgny I am very concerned about what a resort of this magnitude will do to our community. — Lorraine Takahashi (@LTakahashi88) May 6, 2014
Those two proposed casinos are also in the Ramapo River Watershed, which is qualified by the U.S. EPA as a sole-source aquifer.
@michaeljknowles agreed! Makes perfect sense. It belongs there and I hope the opportunity comes to fruition. @Sloatsburgny @tuxedochamber
— Lets Talk 845 (@letstalk845) May 6, 2014
If the Genting proposal is approved, the company has pledged some $25 million dollars to complete the long dormant NY State Thurway Exit 15B, which could bypass traffic around both Sloatsburg and Tuxedo — and involve unintended consequences for local businesses. Or the interchange could lighten the load of heavy vehicle traffic snaking daily through the village and town, much of it using the local corridor to avoid Thruway tolls.
Genting Americas made its Tuxedo casino pitch last week – twice. One to Town of Tuxedo residents at the George F. Baker High School auditorium and the second to Village of Tuxedo Park residents at St. Mary’s Episcopal Church. While the Town of Tuxedo pitch met with vocal resident resistance, the second pitch apparently involved Genting’s A-team and took a decidedly sunnier road. Genting advisor and onetime Empire Resorts director Colin Au led the St. Mary’s meeting for the casino group and reiterated that the casino itself will be hidden away, hardly noticeable tucked neatly between the proposed resort’s two luxury hotels.
Genting originally put the cost of the development at $700 million dollars but recent estimates on the project investment have increased to several billion dollars.
