Several dozen tenants of Manhattan Plaza crowded into a meeting room last Tuesday evening and over complimentary slices of pizza heard from representatives of a plan to erect Manhattan’s first casino in the heart of Times Square.
Roc Nation and SL Green’s proposal for 250,000 square feet of gambling space and a 950-room hotel tower a few blocks from Manhattan Plaza has faced fierce criticism from Broadway workers and theater owners, as well as Manhattan Plaza tenants, many of whom are performing artists.
The blowback could tank Roc Nation’s bid. New York is expected to issue just three lucrative new downstate casino licenses next year, and 11 bids are vying in a competitive process that heavily weighs community support.
At Tuesday’s meeting, the residents on hand included 47-year-old Tenant Association President Aleta LaFargue, a lifelong inhabitant of the sprawling complex of subsidized apartments for performing artists. In the past, LaFargue had been a fierce critic of the plan from Caesars, SL Green, the city’s largest commercial landlord, and Jay-Z’s Roc Nation, railing against it as “predatory” and nothing but harmful as recently as last fall.
But on Tuesday, LaFargue struck a decidedly softer tone.
“I know there’s a lot of feelings about whether or not our community gets a casino, but here we are to listen to what they have to say, what they have to offer,” she told the tenants.
Following LaFargue’s remarks, Roc Nation’s CEO, Desiree Perez, and former NYPD Police Commissioner Bill Bratton, who put together the security plan for the prospective casino, also addressed Manhattan Plaza tenants.
What they weren’t told is that LaFargue had been offered a $20,000-a-month contract to work as an independent contractor for Roc Nation, according to a copy of it obtained by THE CITY dated January 2024.
The document says that LaFargue would “advise and support the Company as it relates to community engagement,” “provide strategic counsel as it relates to assisting the Company with its mission to have a positive social impact” and “attend meetings and select mutually agreed community events.”
The copy of the contract obtained by THE CITY was unsigned, and it’s unclear if LaFargue entered into a formal agreement with Roc Nation or another intermediary.
LaFargue received the contract in an email, reviewed by THE CITY, from a Roc Nation attorney Colin Brown, who wrote, “I understand you already discussed the terms of this agreement with Desiree (i.e., $20K per month for community engagement/social impact advice),” referring to the company’s CEO.
Asked about the contract, LaFargue told THE CITY, “They’ve asked, would I help them understand the community better. And this is the same thing I’ve offered to Related and the same thing we offer to Silverstein,” referring to two other developers with competing proposals for Manhattan casinos. “I’m working for a consultant firm but not directly for them.”
But an hour later LaFargue called back with a different account, denying she’d ever worked with a consulting firm.
“I haven’t signed any contracts, is what I’m saying. They’re not paying me,” she said. Asked about her earlier remarks, she said “I’m not working for a firm. I will work as a consultant at times, yes, but I’ve not gotten paid for it.”
Asked about the apparent change in her story, LaFargue said, “maybe I’m just like speaking in the lofty way that I try to speak. I’m an aspirational consultant.”
A day later LaFargue emailed THE CITY a statement denying she’d signed a contract with Roc Nation directly or any other casino company directly.
“Despite rumors, I have not signed a contract with Roc Nation, the Times Square Casino BID, nor any other BID for a casino in our neighborhood. My role in the Tenants Association is to promote the tenant’s wishes; that is what I have done, and that is what I will continue to do,” she wrote.
In a written statement, Perez, the CEO of Roc Nation, said the company had sought out a number of local advisors like LaFargue as part of their attempt to “add advisors to our team with local expertise that can help us tailor our bid to best meet the goals of nearby communities.”
“While we do not have any paid advisors from Manhattan Plaza, we continue to work closely with this community to ensure our proposal uplifts their needs and priorities,” she added.
The company didn’t return a request for additional comment on how many other advisors it had sought out over the past months or if $20,000 a month was the going rate for such advisors.
“The casino’s developers have been using these tactics to buy the illusion of public support since Day One,” said Wiley Norvell, a spokesperson for the No Times Square Casino Coalition which includes The Broadway League, the trade association for the theater industry, as well as several local tenant groups and block associations including Manhattan Plaza.
Pointing to a recent poll of 400 Midtown residents commissioned by the coalition that showed 71 percent of respondents didn’t want a casino in Times Square, Norvell added, “The question is whether they have any supporters that aren’t being directly compensated.”
‘Broadway’s Bedroom’
With 4-acres, 46 stories and 1,689 apartments, Manhattan Plaza is a small city within itself. Its apartments are subsidized through the federal Section 8 housing program, and most of its residents are performing artists, earning the complex the nickname “Broadway’s Bedroom.” Notable residents over the years have included Tennessee Williams, Larry David and Alicia Keys, who was born there. Neighbors, many of whom have known each other for decades, share the internal courtyard and gardens, basketball courts and gymnasium.
Now, the residents of Manhattan Plaza’s nearly 1,700 apartments will have a critical say in the prospects of the high-stakes bid for a casino just a half mile away.
Each of the 11 proposals across the city will need to submit a $500 million table stake simply to be considered and commit to paying a tax rate of nearly 70%. They’ll do so because there’s so much money to be made in a rare gambling license here. And the state will only consider approving applications if they’re “embraced by the community” and are approved by a group of six residents selected by local elected officials.
Yet for months, Manhattan Plaza tenants’ support seemed out of the question, and LaFargue seemed firmly against the plan. In May 2023, the tenant association led by LaFargue voted to oppose the casino as the building joined the No Times Square Casino Coalition.
LaFargue’s criticism of Roc Nation continued last fall, after a pop-up event where the company offered food in exchange for signatures of support.
“When people think of Times Square, they don’t realize that it’s adjacent to a residential area where the people are really in jeopardy of falling prey to the predatory business that a casino is,” LaFargue told W42ndST at the time. “My family is from Atlantic City, and so I know very well what the methods of casinos are, and they are not to revitalize the communities that surround them.”
Is It Lobbying?
While SL Green, the real estate company working with Roc Nation on the Times Square casino proposal, has disclosed just under $100,000 in lobbying spending on behalf of casinos and gaming so far this year, similar to what other developers have spent on competing proposals, Roc Nation reported spending just $1,442, state records show.
Brad Maione, a spokesperson for the New York State gaming commission, declined to comment on the contract obtained by THE CITY, but noted that there are strict lobbying and ethics rules all potential casino applicants are expected to follow.
John Kaehny, the executive director of the good government group Reinvent Albany, said the contract obtained by THE CITY raises concerns for state regulators about the tactics being deployed to rally community support.
“I would look at this and think what else are these guys up to?”
At the same time, Keahny said, even if there was a signed contract, any activity would likely fall into a gray area of state lobbying law that may not require LaFargue to register as a lobbyist.
Someone “could speak at a public meeting, could opine if asked by public officials and not trigger the lobbying act,” he said. “They’re trying to thread the needle here and avoid triggering these disclosures.”
In the months Roc Nation sent LaFargue a contract, she has continued to carry out her duties as tenant association president, including regular correspondence with elected officials on behalf of residents about the casino, without any public mention of the contract.
LaFargue kicked off Tuesday night’s meeting, opening the floor to representatives of SL Green and Roc Nation, who described plans for security and sanitation, as well as an infusion of cash for child care, after-school programs and job training. Representatives also described a dedicated $15 million in funding for the Manhattan Plaza Tenants Association over a decade plus another .5% percent of their casino profits “over the perpetuity of the casino being there,” striking amounts for a federally subsidized Section 8 building.
“We’re part of New York. We understand New York,” Roc Nation’s Perez told residents. “I grew up here. This is where I’m from and we care about the city. And so here we are.”
Roc Nation didn’t return a request for comment on their offer to Manhattan Plaza or other nearby housing complexes.
LaFargue’s role Tuesday night was limited to mostly introductions and conclusions, while largely ceding the floor to a string of Roc Nation presenters.
“This is simply an informational session so we can hear what these folks have to say,” LaFargue concluded at the end of the night. “That’s it. Instead of rumor, and just our ideas, these guys came, they shared, we can go back and talk about it, and then hopefully hear from some other bids.”
