High hopes and high anxiety are being felt as developers proposing 20 luxury resort casinos in New York battle it out for the four licenses that will be granted. CBS 2’s Tony Aiello reports that competition is fierce, especially in the Catskills region.

Casinos are a jackpot of billions of dollars and thousands of jobs to begin with. And for the Catskills, a chance to reclaim the glory days of the old lavish resort hotels.

The rolling majestic beauty of the Catkills is scarred with decrepit remnants of past glory – places like the Concord Resort and famed Grossinger’s Hotel now shuttered.

While the buildings still stand, the crowds and jobs they supported are long gone.

Now, four casinos are coming to three upstate regions.

It has been predicted that the Catskills will get two of those casinos, Aiello reported.

Foxwoods wants to build at Grossinger’s.

At the Concord, two different developers want to create big casino resorts.

There’s another proposal at the old Nevele property in Ulster County.

But in the struggling Catskill towns, hope is mixing with anxiety.

“My fear is they may not come here. That’s my greatest fear,” said Sullivan County resident Mike Gastwirth.

The Catskills region includes Orange County, where there are five casino proposals, including one on the Sterling Forest property, just 45 miles from Times Square.

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