Jessica Ramos spotted meeting with Steve Cohen’s right-hand man and Kathy Wylde

Spotted Friday afternoon at Pershing Square in Midtown: mayoral candidate and state Sen. Jessica Ramos, Partnership for New York CEO Kathy Wylde and Michael Sullivan, chief of staff to billionaire Mets owner Steve Cohen. 

The sighting comes five months after the Queens lawmaker announced her opposition to Cohen’s proposal to build a casino in her district next to Citi Field, putting the project on life support. Following more than a year of town halls, discussions and consideration – she opted not to introduce the land-use legislation necessary for the project in the state Legislature. With seemingly none of her Senate colleagues wanting to break precedent and take up the bill themselves, that left Cohen’s plans all but dead in the water. The billionaire’s team, however, said they wouldn’t give up and would explore other avenues. And Ramos, who announced her campaign for New York City mayor in September, is evidently still on speaking terms with them while lawmakers are not in session.

Even if the land use bill ultimately passed, the casino would not be a sure bet – Cohen is among multiple magnates vying to win one of three coveted downstate casino licenses that are expected to be awarded in late 2025. But without land use issues resolved, any project, let alone Cohen’s, likely would not be approved by the state Gaming Commission.

When she announced she wouldn’t be supporting a casino in her district, Ramos left the door open to an alternative project sans a gambling facility. “Mr. Cohen and his team have often declared their love for our community and said they recognize our potential. Finding a path forward would be a good way to show it,” she wrote in a statement in May. Cohen’s team, however, has long been adamant that any proposal at the site without a casino is not viable, lacking an “economic engine.”

Karl Rickett, a spokesperson for the Metropolitan Park project, declined to comment. Ramos and Wylde did not respond to requests for comment.

Asked for his take on the sighting, state Sen. Joe Addabbo, who chairs the Senate Committee on Racing, Gaming and Wagering – speaking broadly – said, “This is what the off-season is about … Leading up to January session, we try to talk, negotiate, do your thing, set things up for when we go back to in January to hopefully have some productivity on any given issue. I’d love for some productivity on the downstate license issue.”

Asked if that was the case for issues that were thought to be settled, Addabbo added, “I don't think anybody moved on from anything here.”