This week's biggest Winners & Losers

The state Gaming Facility Location Board just greenlit the three remaining casino proposals, which is good news for Soo Kim of the Bally’s Corp., Robert DeSalvio of Genting Americas East and Mets owner Steve Cohen. But the board did so even as it voiced significant concerns in its accompanying report. Otherwise, these execs may very well hit the jackpot later this month as the state Gaming Commission prepares to finally issue licenses. It’s almost over, folks.

Did anyone have more to be grateful for this Thanksgiving than Julie Menin? The Upper East Side City Council member has been running the marathon speaker race at a sprint’s pace, and she locked down a supermajority of committed votes on the eve of the holiday – effectively closing out the speaker race at unprecedented speed, despite progressive opposition. She still needs to actually be voted in on Jan. 7, but her main rival Crystal Hudson appears to have conceded, leaving a clear runway for Menin’s election.

Whether you’re head of the Starbucks union, as Lynne Fox is, or New York City’s Department of Consumer and Worker Protection Commissioner Vilda Vera Mayuga, getting a cool $40 million settlement from the massive coffee chain over violations of the city’s worker protection laws is definitely a big deal. The picket line continues, but a couple tens of millions of dollars is quite the pick-me-up.

“All right, bring it on. We’ll override.” That was essentially how New York City Council members responded last month when they learned that once again, Mayor Eric Adams had vetoed several bills recently passed by the chamber. True to their word, the City Council did exactly that mere weeks later, easily resurrecting the four measures. It was done swiftly and efficiently, perhaps even with a grim annoyance that they had to be bothered – and after the fiery veto battles of old, perhaps that was the most bruising thing for the outgoing mayor.

It’s tough being the NYPD commissioner, especially when a close relative decides to trash your new boss. Jessica Tisch’s brother called Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani the “enemy of Jewish people” at a recent charity dinner, leading her to apologize to Mamdani. Oh, and there’s also the little matter of a Department of Investigation probe finding that one of Tisch’s officers violated the Big Apple’s own sanctuary city laws. If this week is any indication, it could turn into a rocky transition for the commissioner.

Remember New York City Mayor Mathias Nicoll? If you don’t, you’re not alone. Nicoll, who became the city’s sixth mayor in 1672, apparently served a second non-consecutive term in 1674, which is missing from the city’s official mayoral roster. Now, a historian wants Nicoll recognized as both the sixth and eighth mayor, just as the city lists DeWitt Clinton as the 47th, 49th and 51st mayor. While Nicoll, a former Assembly speaker and New York secretary, is forgotten, no one will ever forget Eric Adams.