As the state Gaming Commission begins review of the five projects under consideration for the Capital District's casino license, its toughest task may be wading through hopefuls' executive summaries.
Applications filed June 30 for the Howe Caverns Resort and Casino, Howes Cave; Rivers Casino & Resort at Mohawk Harbor, Schenectady; Hard Rock Hotel & Casino, Rensselaer, Capital View Casino & Resort, East Greenbush; and a still-unnamed site in Amsterdam make developers' case for why theirs should be the winning project.
Often using the same words:
Premier.
Transformative.
Shovel-ready.
Historic.
Iconic.
High-end.
Howe Caverns has picked Michigan casino developer Michael Malik and Full House Resorts for a proposed $450 million resort there.
Plans include: 1,200-1,500 slot machines and 35-60 gaming tables; two luxury hotels, four restaurants, an outdoor water park and a dinosaur theater.
Local support is a state requirement for applicants and all five have it.
"If you've seen the other projects and the conceptuals...certainly, the need is here and it looks like quite an interesting project," Cobleskill Supervisor Leo McAllister said of HCRC Monday.
Sagendorf Corners Road, which would be the casino's main entrance, would require major work, he said, something the developer is well aware of.
Revenues for Cobleskill, Mr. McAllister said, would come in part from real estate and sales tax.
The HCRC executive summary describes the project as the "most transformative and lasting, regionally impactful project that the State envisioned" and a way to "finish our re-emergence from devastating hardships inflicted by recent natural disasters including Hurricane Irene."
As for "shovel-readiness," "there is no proposed gaming facility in the State that can be underway and built faster than ours."
Other projects, however, make similar claims.
--Rivers Casino & Resort at Mohawk Harbor, would be a $300 million casino project by Rush Street Gaming of Chicago and the Rotterdam-based Galesi Group at the former Alco site in Schenectady.
The 60-acre waterfront location would house 1,150 slot machines, 66 gaming tables, and a 50,000 square-foot poker room. There would be two hotels.
Like HCRC, Rivers Casino's selling points include the fact that Schenectady is a "distressed area" and the site is "shovel-ready."
--Hard Rock Hotel & Casino would be a $280 million project by Hard Rock International and Global Gaming Solutions in Rensselaer across the Hudson River from downtown Albany.
It would have 1,500 slot machines, 50 gaming tables, and an Off Track Betting Outlet.
There would also be a hotel, 250-seat Hard Rock Café, and a Rock Shop store.
It bills itself as "a true destination resort, not just a 'locals' casino" and claims to have "the best location in the Capital Region."
--Capital View Casino & Resort would be operated by Saratoga Casino and Raceway and Churchill Downs in East Greenbush.
The $300 million project would feature a 700,000 square-foot gaming room floor with 1,506 slot machines and 56 gaming tables.
It also includes a hotel, 500-seat event center, and a high-end steakhouse.
Finally, the still-unnamed proposal by Clairvest group Inc. and the Great Canadian Gaming Corp. would be a $250 million casino on 500 acres in the Town of Florida and City of Amsterdam.
In addition to the casino, there would be a hotel, three restaurants, a 200-seat entertainment lounge, meeting space, 300 residential units and two golf courses.