Resorts World Catskills' nongaming assets will be sold to a corporation that Sullivan County in Upstate New York has just established.

The Sullivan County Resort Facilities Local Development Corporation was recently established by Sullivan County officials.  Purchasing, developing, maintaining, and owning "certain real and tangible personal property located in the Town of Thompson, County of Sullivan, New York" was the only reason the company was established.

The Sullivan County Resort Facilities Local Development Corporation unanimously approved issuing up to $585 million in Series 2025 Bonds during its meeting this week.  The company's agreement with Empire Resorts Inc., the current owner and operator of RW Catskills, which is jointly owned by Genting Malaysia (49%) and Kien Huat Reality (51%), the latter of which is the family trust of Malaysian billionaire Lim Kok Thay, will be carried out thanks to the capital raising.

At first, the county corporation intended to issue bonds in order to raise $570 million.  "To accommodate closing costs and give flexibility," the offering was raised.

After spending $1.2 billion, Resorts World Catskills debuted in February 2018.  There are over 1,600 slot machines and 140 live dealer table games on the 100,000-square-foot casino floor.  In May, the casino shut down its in-house sportsbook. 

Disaster RW

Upstate New York has consistently fallen short of revenue projections, so Genting's $1.2 billion wager was a poor one.

Every year, Empire Resorts lost money operating the Monticello Raceway and Resorts World Catskills.  Through his family trust, Lim, who was still in charge of Genting, the conglomerate his father had started in 1965, saved the investment when the business approached bankruptcy in 2019.

Sullivan County is stepping in to protect RW Catskills' resort operations while Genting concentrates on its $5.5 billion bid in downstate New York to transform the Resorts World New York City racino into a fully integrated resort with live tables, sports betting, and slot machines reminiscent of Las Vegas.

 Despite its poor performance, Resorts World Catskills has created almost 1,400 union jobs and continues to give the county vital tax income and economic stability.  PepsiCo recently closed its Frito-Lay facility in Liberty, resulting in the loss of roughly 300 jobs in Sullivan County.

'I want  to assure the people and the taxpayers in Sullivan County that they have no stake in this deal. There’s no collateral that the county or its taxpayers are responsible for,” said Matt McPhillips, a county legislator representing District 1 who is the majority leader. Radio Catskill first reported McPhillips’ remarks.

“This is more to allow the casino to reconsolidate, reposition itself, and really invest in this property,” McPhillips added. 

Acquisition of Nongaming

The majority of Resorts World Catskills' nongaming assets are being acquired by Sullivan County.  The casino will remain under the ownership and management of Empire Resorts.

The hotel, golf course, theater, meeting and event facilities, dining areas, and spa will all be owned and operated by the Sullivan County Resort Facilities Local Development Corporation.

The closing date of the deal is uncertain.