Someone will be getting a casino for Christmas.
And Emil Galasso is still hoping-and hopeful-that it will be Howe Caverns.
The New York Gaming Facility Location Board will hold its final meeting next Wednesday, December 17, in Albany.
That's when the winners of the state's casino licenses will be named.
In addition to the $450 million Howe Caverns Resort and Casino, projects still in the running in the Capital District are the: Hard Rock Hotel & Casino, Rensselaer; Capital View Casino & Resort, East Greenbush; and Rivers Casino & Resort in Schenectady.
The Howe Caverns Resort & Casino is projected to generate $400-$500 million locally in related construction revenue and more than 3,000 construction jobs and 1,700 ongoing jobs.
In addition to a world class casino, developers' plans call for and a 10-floor luxury hotel, along with a water park, restaurants, and a second hotel.
It also includes the long-awaited addition of a dinosaur theater at Howe Caverns.
Howe Caverns supporters stole the show at the Gaming Facility Board's September hearing in Albany and Mr. Galasso remains optimistic that will pay off next Wednesday.
"They've been very tight-lipped, but from everything I've seen and heard, we're still in the running," he said.
"A lot of the little things we've been asked to comply with? They've given me hope. Or why else would they be asking for them?"
Under the state's own guidelines, the winning casino must go to an economically ailing community where there's local support for it.
The proposed site also needs to be as shovel-ready as possible.
Howe Caverns supporters have said again and again that theirs' is the project that best meets all of that criteria.
Mr. Galasso said he's more excited than nervous about the outcome of next Wednesday's meeting, "excited for our county and what it would mean. Excited for us, Montgomery, Otsego Counties...
"In my mind, I truly believe we have the best proposal. For all of us."