Empire Resorts, Inc. (NASDAQ: NYNY) announced today that effective June, 30, 2008, Bruce Berg has been appointed to its board of directors. Berg is Executive Vice President of Cappelli Enterprises, a major development company in the New York region and the leading developer in Westchester County.
Berg has extensive experience in all aspects of real estate development, leasing, management and construction. Prior to joining Cappelli in 1999, he served as Director of Development for Disney Development Company and previously served as Director of Market Development for AMF Bowling. He began his career as Project Manager for Xerox Realty Corporation in 1983.
With Cappelli Enterprises he has been responsible for overseeing the approvals, design, licensing, and leasing of numerous major projects including The Ritz-Carlton, Westchester, a 950,000-square-foot mixed-use hotel/condo/office project, and City Center, a 1.3 million-square-foot residential, retail, entertainment and dining complex both of which are in downtown White Plains, NY. He is also responsible for the approvals and design of the Concord Resort Masterplan. While at Disney, Mr. Berg obtained approvals for the Disney Studios Masterplan, a two-million-square-foot office, sound stage and back of house project, as well as developing the Disneyland Headquarters building in Anaheim and the Mighty Ducks practice facility in Anaheim. With Xerox he served as Project Manager on the El Segundo and Orange County Xerox Centers, which encompassed more than 1 million square feet of office space.
David P. Hanlon, CEO and president of Empire Resorts, said, “We are thrilled to have someone with Bruce’s credentials join our board of directors. His real estate development background will serve as a great asset as we relocate our Monticello gaming and raceway facilities to the new Concord project in the Town of Thompson, NY. We welcome him during this exciting time, as we prepare to make history in re-establishing the Catskills as a premier region for tourism.”
Berg resides with his wife Laurie and two children, Joshua and Danielle in Chappaqua, NY.
About Empire Resorts, Inc.
Empire Resorts operates the Monticello Gaming & Raceway and is involved in the development of other gaming and non-gaming resort projects in the Catskills. Additional information can be found at www.empiresorts.com.
Statements in this press release regarding the company’s business that are not historical facts are “forward-looking statements” that involve risks and uncertainties, including the need for regulatory approvals, financing and successful completion of construction. The company wishes to caution readers not to place undue reliance on such forward-looking statements, which statements are made pursuant to the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1994, and as such, speak only as of the date made. To the extent the content of this press release includes forward-looking statements, they involve various risks and uncertainties including (i) the risk that the Company’s proposed joint venture with Concord Associates is not completed or the Company is not able to develop a Class II or Class III casino; (ii) the risk that financing necessary for the proposed programs or projects may not be able to be obtained because of credit factors, market conditions or other contingencies, (iii) the risk of non-compliance by various counterparties of the related agreements, and (iv) general risks affecting the company as described from time to time in it’s reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. For a full discussion of such risks and uncertainties, which could cause actual results to differ from those contained in the forward-looking statements, see “Risk Factors” in the company’s Annual Report or Form 10-K for the most recently ended fiscal year.