Berman Leaves Empire Resorts As reported by the New York Record: "Robert Berman was once Sullivan County's golden boy, the driving force behind the region's hopes for casino development.
"More recently, however he's been controversial, even confrontational, and some government leaders have said the company he built, Empire Resorts, would be better off without him. "On Wednesday, Empire announced that Berman, who stepped down as chief executive officer a few months ago, was leaving the company altogether for family reasons. The announcement came 11 days after the death of his only sibling, Philip. "…Empire owns both Monticello Raceway and Might M Gaming and has been trying for more than a decade to develop Indian-owned casinos at the site with Berman at the helm throughout. It hasn't been a smooth ride. "He helped secure federal approvals in 2000 for the St. Regis Mohawks to build a casino there only to see the tribe lured away by another company at another site. He was there in 2002 when several former executives of the predecessor company, Alpha Hospitality, were indicted on bank fraud charges…"
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