Crown Resorts’ New Sydney Casino Project Might Be Postponed

Local residents try to block Crown Resorts’ new Sydney casino project.

Casino Resorts, a large Australian casino operator, made the global news after 18 people were arrested in China. In addition, 87 of people who visited Crown Resorts’ casino in Macau were questioned by the Chinese police.

The story begins to unwrap and one of the people who was arrested, a Chinese national who was employed by Crown Resorts has already been released. We are yet to see whether Crown Resorts will be cleared of all charges. It is likely that the authorities have completed the preliminary investigations and the case will soon be in court.

The Residents Object the Project

The arrest in China aren’t the only thing that’s worrying the management of Crown Resorts. Namely, it has just been announced that the company might postpone its new Sydney project, despite the fact that it was approved by the authorities earlier this year. The company was planning on building a large, multibillion casino in Sydney’s are of Barangaroo, but residents of a nearing neighbourhood filed a case which will be considered by the Land and Environment Court of New South Wales.

If the residents’ case is accepted, that will certainly delay the start of the project and some claim it might even be cancelled. The residents object the plan, as the casino resort is planned to include a large, 271 metres tall hotel which, they claim will prevent them from receiving any sunlight.

The residents have been objecting both the choice of location and the design of the object, ever since the project was introduced. At first, Crown Resorts planned on building on the shore, but that plan was abandoned. The new location was chosen in collaboration with the company’s development partner Lendlease Group, which is one of the largest development companies in the country. According to the new plan, the large hotel tower is supposed to be built on a large podium where the casino will be located.

The Government of New South Wales Approved the Plan Earlier this Year

The residents aren’t the only ones that are not satisfied with the project. A number of Sydney-based architects have also raised their concerns that the project will take up too much public space and would be incompatible with the architectural style that is prevalent in the area.

The project plan sets the launch date of the new casino in 2021, but if the residents manage to challenge the legality of the whole plan and the case goes to court, it is very likely that the launch date will be postponed. The New South Wales Planning Assessment Commission approved the plan under the condition that it allows a bigger foreshore walk.

Crown Resorts have a licence that was issued by the government of NSW in 2013 and the new casino is planned to host VIP players. In the new resort there won’t be any slot machines, or pokies as they’re known in Australia.

It has been claimed that the company’s VIP operations are in danger after the abovementioned Chinese scandal, as some assume that most of the casino’s VIP revenues come from Chinese high-rollers, and judging by recent events the number of those visitors will decrease.