Will Steve Cohen’s gambit to sidestep Jessica Ramos work?

With state Sen. John Liu’s impending introduction of parkland alienation legislation that would allow Mets owner Steve Cohen to build a casino and entertainment complex in the Citi Field parking lot, it seems the billionaire’s grand plan has some momentum. 

Liu announced Sunday he’ll back the proposal with the addition of a proposed pedestrian bridge connecting Willets Point to Downtown Flushing. That bridge, known as Skypark, will likely require additional approvals to be built; should that  project not come to fruition, Cohen has signed a legally binding agreement to invest $100 million in infrastructure improvements for Flushing Meadows Corona Park, which is contingent on him getting a casino license. Liu told City & State that he plans to formally introduce the bill later this week.

But will Liu’s bill have legs? 

Cohen’s Metropolitan Park plan – which includes a casino, a concert hall, a Queens food hall and 25 acres of green space – appeared all but dead in the water last year, after state Sen. Jessica Ramos announced that she would not introduce the parkland alienation bill to make way for a casino. That followed more than a year of deliberation and came even as then-Assembly Member Jeff Aubry had introduced corresponding legislation in the Assembly. 

Cohen’s team had said it would explore other avenues to get the bill into the Senate, including finding another sponsor, and spent the next 11-odd months aggressively pursuing other options. Though not entirely unprecedented, it’s quite rare for another lawmaker to sponsor this sort of bill in a colleague’s district. 

Since the site in question is legally parkland, it must be given specific allowances in order for it to be used for anything outside of what is already prescribed in the Mets’ long-standing lease with the city, which includes Citi Field (and previously Shea Stadium), its parking lot and concessions. Without that glaring land use matter sorted, the project would not be awarded one of the three full downstate casino licenses up for grabs later this year. 

Liu has long voiced concerns about casinos and gambling and once said that Willets Point would not be a good place to put a casino, so it came as a surprise – both to outside observers and to at least some Senate staffers – when he bucked the tradition of member deference and announced he would introduce the parkland alienation bill that Ramos would not.

Although Liu said that the two senators have been in touch about the bill, it’s a big loss for Ramos. “My position has not changed. I cannot support a casino in Corona and am a definitive no on any alienation bill that goes against my neighbors’ wishes,” Ramos said in a statement. (Polls commissioned by Ramos and Cohen last year showed conflicting levels of community support.) When she announced her decision not to introduce a parkland alienation bill last year, Ramos told reporters that, “I would be very surprised, and frankly, offended, if someone would try to go around me and what the people in my district wish,” adding that she thought Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins “would be very wary of creating such a precedent.”

Technically, Liu does have a connection to the project. Although the lion’s share of the roughly 78 acres to be alienated – including Citi Field and the intended site of the future casino – are within Ramos’ district, about 12 acres of it cross into Liu’s district. According to Liu, he began having conversations with the Cohen camp in January – months after Ramos made her decision not to introduce the bill and more than a year after Cohen’s team began courting Ramos’ support.

Senate Majority spokesperson Mike Murphy said that the bill has yet to be discussed at conference, though he pointed to the 12 acres of the project site in Liu’s district. Karl Rickett, a spokesperson for the Metropolitan Park project, also pointed to those 12 acres of the project in Liu’s district, all of which is south of Roosevelt Avenue. 

Asked about what precedent might be set, Liu said, “I don’t know that there is a precedent (being set) – it’s been done before. … There have been bills put forth by members of the Legislature that pertain to a project not necessarily within the strict bounds of their district.” He also argued that Cohen’s proposal is not just a local matter. “As far as whose district it is, the reality is that this proposal is not a local activity – the impact is far greater.”

State Sen. Joe Addabbo, who chairs the Senate Gaming Committee, did not seem all that convinced and was still wary of the precedent. “This issue has always been known to be Jessica Ramos’ issue,” he told City & State. “It could have been a number of elected (officials), because it does affect them, certainly, but this, you know, this was her issue. So again, taking that historical perspective, that's one of the things I will consider.”

Deputy Senate Majority Leader Mike Gianaris said he did not want to comment on Liu’s bill and what precedent it might set without first reading it and discussing it with his colleagues. But he said he has supported parkland alienation legislation in the past when parkland has been replaced with an equal or greater amount. “Mind you, the ‘parkland’ that we're talking about here is a parking lot right now – so if they actually can produce a real park that's usable for the community, that would certainly be a positive thing. But again, I haven't had a chance to really digest it,” Gianaris said. 

Liu’s bill comes weeks after Assembly Member Larinda Hooks, Aubry’s successor, introduced a companion bill. Liu said he expects Hooks’ bill will pass the Assembly, and he decided to introduce his bill with that in mind, since the Senate would then be the “only remaining stumbling blocks to even letting them submit an application.” Hooks, who previously told City & State she’d be open to working with a senator other than Ramos, praised Liu’s decision. “I applaud Senator John Liu for being the senate sponsor of this legislation that paves the way for Metropolitan Park – a game-changing investment that will deliver real, lasting benefits for the people of Queens,” she said in a statement.

Even if the bill ultimately passes both chambers and is signed into law, that is a moot point if the Gaming Commission ultimately does not award Cohen a license. 

Once an application is submitted, as previously prescribed by the Legislature, it becomes subject to a community advisory committee of six members, with the mayor, borough president, City Council member, Assembly member and state senator each making one appointment to the body.

But there’s a twist: Even with Liu carrying the Senate bill, it would be Ramos – not Liu – who would appoint a member to the community advisory council, both Liu and Addabbo confirmed.

Meanwhile, state Sen. Nathalia Fernandez and Assembly Member Mike Benedetto introduced similar parkland alienation legislation Monday in order to clear the way for the potential Bally’s casino complex at Ferry Point Park in the Bronx. The two lawmakers claimed that their decision to introduce the bill was not necessarily an endorsement of the casino project but was just meant to ensure the Bally’s project could still compete for a casino license.