Related modifies Hudson Yards casino proposal to include 4,000 housing units
Renderings courtesy of Related Companies and Wynn Resorts
Related Companies is more than doubling the number of housing units in its $12 billion Hudson Yards casino proposal ahead of an important City Council vote. After feedback from the community, the developer announced plans to replace a 1,400-foot-tall office tower with two residential buildings, which would increase the projected housing from 1,500 units to 4,000 total units on the site. As reported by Crain’s, the change seeks to address critics of Related’s efforts to modify the terms of a 2009 rezoning, which originally called for over 5,000 new homes on the site.
The developer is counting on the City Council’s approval of these zoning changes in the coming weeks to secure one of three downstate casino licenses to be awarded later this year.
Related and its partners, Wynn Resorts and Oxford Properties, are proposing a financing structure in which the developer makes payments in lieu of taxes (PILOTs), as detailed on the proposal’s website.
This system, previously used during the initial phases of Hudson Yards, would cover the costs of the new housing and the $2 billion platform atop the western portion of Hudson Yards where the complex would be built.
Revenue from Hudson Yards has exceeded expectations by more than $200 million annually. These surplus payments have been directed into the city’s general fund, totaling $860 million since 2017 and expected to reach $2.1 billion by the end of fiscal year 2028, as reported by The Real Deal.
The new proposal maintains the same number of affordable units, 324, the same amount as previously outlined, along with a 5.6-acre public park, a public school, and a daycare.
In January, Manhattan Community Board 4 voted overwhelmingly to reject the proposed casino, with 39 against and one abstention, according to W42ST. In February, Manhattan Borough President Mark Levine recommended disapproval of the project, stating that the plan “does not achieve its full housing potential,” according to DCP records.
“Over the last few months, we met with the community and heard consistent calls to add more housing to Hudson Yards West, even as many acknowledge the unique financial hurdles of developing the site,” Related CEO Jeff Blau stated, according to Crain’s.
“We tried to think outside the box and identified a historically successful funding model that would allow us to increase the amount of housing at the site to up to 4,000 units, while still preserving the other critical benefits of the project.”
Whether the new housing will satisfy opponents remains uncertain. The fate of the project hinges on the decision of Council Member Erik Bottcher, who represents the district and has faced intense pressure from both supporters and opponents of the complex following the City Planning Commission’s (CPC) vote to advance the “Hudson Yards West” plan earlier this month.
Among the primary concerns surrounding the project are its divergence from the original 2009 rezoning plan, the reduction in the number of affordable housing units and buildings, and the potential impact on views from the High Line.
According to Alan van Capelle, executive director of Friends of the High Line, more than 8,000 local residents have signed a petition opposing the plan, as 6sqft reported.
John Vlasto, a spokesman for Friends of the High Line, told Crain’s that the group remains opposed to the project and plans to testify against it at a City Council hearing on Tuesday to review the proposed zoning changes.
Plans for the ambitious casino project were filed in February 2024. The previous proposal called for three new skyscrapers, including an 80-story residential building with 1,500 apartments, an office tower with about 2.2 million square feet of office space, and a gaming facility and a 1,750-key hotel run by Wynn Resorts.
The proposal includes a 5.6-acre public park called “Hudson Green,” comparable in size to Bryant Park. Designed by Hollander Design and Sasaki, the space would offer sweeping views of the Hudson River, with open lawns, gardens, playscapes, and groves creating a seamless connection along the site’s western edge, as 6sqft previously reported.
Bounded by West 30th and West 33rd Streets and 11th and 12th Avenues, the project would require building a platform over two-thirds of the 13-acre rail yard below. It is located directly west of the first phase of Hudson Yards, which opened in 2019.
The proposal is vying for one of three downstate gaming licenses approved by the New York State Legislature in April 2022. It is up against several other high-profile proposals from prominent developers.
Among the contenders are New York Mets owner Steve Cohen’s $8 billion “Metropolian Park” next to Citi Field, the Bjarke Ingels-designed Freedom Plaza near the U.N., “The Avenir” complex across from the Javits Center, a Jay-Z-backed Caesars Palace casino in Times Square, and a proposal in Coney Island.
While Related is unlikely to move forward with the project if it fails to secure a gaming license, the developer says the use of PILOTs will be necessary to fund any future developments atop the western rail yards. Although the 2009 rezoning deal called for using luxury condo sales to fund construction, Related says prices have more than doubled in recent years and condo sales have become “less predictable,” according to Crain’s.
If approved, the project is expected to take roughly five years to complete.
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