With help from Shawn Ness
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Ramos’ Roar: State Senator Jessica Ramos made a single announcement today, dealing a blow to one of America’s wealthiest men as he works feverishly to expand his New York City presence.
But Mets billionaire owner Steve Cohen isn’t done yet.
The massive platoon that makes up Cohen’s team showed no intention of giving up even after progressive state lawmakers declared opposition to his plan to build a casino at Citi Field. Anyone who has paid attention to Ramos’ comments in recent months would have guessed that she was heading in this direction and was preparing for it.
Carl Ricketts, a spokesman for Cohen’s Metropolitan Parks project, said in a statement, “We respect Senator Ramos’ views, but the state has never intended for any one person to have the ability to single-handedly halt or approve gaming projects.” He said.
“Metropolitan Park has overwhelming support from elected officials, unions and the community, so we are confident we can deliver the best project in the best location,” Rickett added. “We have over a year and multiple pathways to secure the necessary approvals. “Our team remains committed to bringing Metropolitan Park to life.”
Rickett also pointed out that gaming is “the only viable economic engine, enabling 23,000 jobs, $8 billion in investment and significant community benefits.” This was a reference to Ramos’ decision to introduce legislation that would reserve the land in question for the convention. There is a center and a hotel, but it is not a casino.
Cohen needs the state legislature to alienate the land in question, a parking lot designated as a park in the Ramos neighborhood. Without her support, the bid becomes more difficult, but not impossible.
His team can count on support from local businesses and other Queens politicians, and hope it all becomes so overwhelming that the senator changes his mind. There is a chance that Ramos will be effectively shot down today.
“No elected official should be the sole arbiter of this $8 billion investment. Therefore, I strongly urge Governor Hochul and the State Senate to pursue other avenues to make the Metropolitan Park proposal a reality and ensure Queens continues to get the funding we deserve. ” Queens Borough President Donovan Richards posted on X today.
In fact, the Mets owner may be able to convince one of Ramos’ colleagues in the Senate to go after him and sponsor a bill to secure the land. But the move, which has little precedent in a state legislature where local lawmakers are respected on land-use issues, would mean war with Ramos.
A state Senate source, who declined to be named for fear of retaliation, said it was unlikely that Minority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins would override Ramos’ objections and introduce legislation to secure parks in her district.
Bronx Sen. Nathalia Fernandez’s district includes Bally’s Golf Links in Ferry Point, another casino bid site that requires park bills. She emerged as a possible solution for Cohen’s team to introduce legislation that would simultaneously secure the park in the Bronx and the land next to Citi Field.
But Fernandes rejected that idea today.
“Out of respect for his colleagues in Congress, if the senator decides to introduce a park alienation bill, that bill will not include any areas outside his or her district,” Justin Sanchez, Fernández’s chief of staff, told Playbook. He said. “Today’s news doesn’t change that.”
Since New York State announced it would grant three casino licenses to the New York City area, Cohen has seized every opportunity to get one, hiring an army of lobbyists, sending out hundreds of mailers, and wooing local politicians. He spent lavishly in the process.
But it was progressive senators who stood in his way from the start. He has occasionally emerged as a major challenger to Mayor Eric Adams in 2025. After months of hints, Ramos finally spoke publicly against the project today.
“I think it’s a sad state of affairs that casinos are the best economic development idea in our state,” she told reporters on the second floor of the Capitol today. “Casinos’ business model is, by definition, about extracting wealth from people,” she said. … This is not beneficial.” — Jason Bipperman
Hochul promotes social media legislation: Work with states to draft legislation to protect or address children under 18 years of age. That’s the message Gov. Kathy Hochul is sending to her social media moguls.
Efforts to reduce social media use by minors — one of the highest-profile fights left this session in Albany — are pitting tech companies against the Democratic governor. And with few legislative disputes still left to be resolved, Hocheol is putting a lot of his firepower into this issue.
“We’re not anti-business, we’re anti-harming our children,” Hocheol told reporters Tuesday. “They should work with us on this bill, not oppose it. So I think we’re making some progress. Some responsible companies are already taking action on their own, and I commend them.”
The bill aims to protect the mental health of children whose content advocates, including state teachers unions, view as addictive or problematic. It faced backlash from wealthy social media giants across the country, including Meta.
But Ho-cheol remains optimistic.
She said some of the bills being drafted would include a more rigorous process for users to prove they are over 18, but did not clarify what those controls would look like.
“Companies already have to do this to sell online games and cigarettes,” she said. “You already have to do this. If they tell me you can’t do it, I won’t buy it.”
Julie Samuels, president and CEO of Tech:NYC, said the organization is “in the midst of productive discussions with lawmakers and community groups regarding this bill.”
“But this is a very complex task, and we must be careful to avoid the fate of every other state that has passed similar legislation,” Samuels added. “Support for children has been delayed for years because hasty legislation is still tied up in the courts,” he added. — Caitlin Cordero
KENNEDY, STEIN CLAIM BALLOT ACCESS: Green Party presidential candidate Jill Stein stopped by the Capitol this afternoon to claim she will soon submit enough petitions to the State Board of Elections to secure a spot on the New York State ballot.
“We know from the Democratic primary held a little over a month ago in this state that the Democratic Party was at the bottom,” Stein said.
The Green Party lost automatic voting status in 2020 due to new rules that harmed minority parties. Now they need to submit 45,000 signatures to get it voted on.
Stein declined to say how many he actually submitted. “We really don’t know,” she said. She claimed that “the system is so oppressive that we can’t count the number of signatures.”
Another candidate filing a New York petition today: Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who attracted more than 135,000 after a collection process that faced criticism for misleading signers. “More than any presidential candidate ever submitted by a state,” Kennedy claimed on Twitter.
This also appears to be high for all candidates. This record was previously claimed by Andrew Cuomo, Kennedy’s brother-in-law, when he rallied 100,000 people to run for governor in 2002. — Bill Mahoney
charter war — New York Mayor Eric Adams is keeping a tight rein on the newly announced Charter Revision Commission. At a news conference today, his administration released the city’s governing documents and said it has no plans to hire outside staff to help with the work of proposing changes that would go to voters on the November ballot.
The mayor’s break with the practice (most mayors create multiple charter amendment committees) could make City Hall more responsive to needs at a time when the creation of the committee was already widely seen as a temporary response to the City Council’s push for more input. It is done. I agree with Adams’ appointment.
“If you’re serious about this, you have to have staff,” John Kaehny, president of the government reform group Reinvent Albany, said in an interview. “(The mayor’s committee) lacks any kind of seriousness, and the mayor is actually giving ammunition to critics who say it’s a foolish political move.”
But Adams told reporters that past mayors have spent too much money on charter amendments. “I believe in being concise, quick and getting things done,” he said. “We are spending too much money on window dressing. We can do better.” —Joe Anuta
— Former State Senator Todd Kaminsky Legal loopholes are being exploited to lobby environmentalists. (Bloomberg)
— The sun will set perfectly between Building for the next two days in Manhattan. (Daily News)
— The appeals court ruled. The state violated the opioid company’s due process rights, which could mean the state has to refund millions of dollars. (Times Union)
