Bids for New York licenses are being advanced by Yonkers and Queens casinos.

After all proposals in Manhattan failed to pass a crucial barrier, two candidates in New York’s free-for-all competition for casino licenses progressed past municipal committees on Thursday.

Separate panels known as community advisory committees unanimously approved the bids from Empire City Casino by MGM Resorts in Yonkers, just north of New York City, and Resorts World near the Aqueduct Racetrack in Queens.

Since they currently provide some gaming, Resorts World and Empire City Casino, which runs next to Yonkers Raceway, have been regarded as the front-runners for full casino licenses, of which the state has up to three available.

The state’s Gaming Commission and Gaming Facility Location Board will then vote on the casino bids in December. There are still four other candidates in the running, some of whom have encountered strong criticism from locals.

ALSO READ: New York panel endorses MGM’s racetrack slots operation to become a complete casino.

The five-member panels, which examine local support for a project, gave the Yonkers and Queens projects full-throated recommendations, in contrast to the three failed Manhattan bids.

The committee considering Resorts World’s bid commended the project, stating that thousands of jobs would be created by the projected $5.5 billion expansion. The group’s leader, Assemblywoman Stacey Pheffer Amato, stated that it will benefit the economy for many generations to come.

While the community had expressed valid concerns in Yonkers, primarily with police and possible flooding at the location, the committee representatives stated that the $2.3 billion project on the New York State Thruway, located approximately 15 miles north of Midtown Manhattan, should not be derailed.

The executive director of the Yonkers Democratic Party and panellist Frank Jereis stated, “It will definitely be a successful project and casino for years to come, not only for Yonkers, but for the entire region.”

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