Empire Resorts Announces That the Park Avenue Bank of New York Has Issued a 90-Day Standstill Notice to Company’s Note Holders

Empire Resorts, Inc. (the "Company") (NASDAQ: NYNY) announced today that The Park Avenue Bank of New York (the “Bank”) has issued a notice of default for failure of the Company to repay $4.4 million in debt obligations to the Bank on their maturity date of July 28, 2009. As a result of the Company's default, the Bank contemporaneously exercised a right under an Intercreditor Agreement which was assigned by the Bank of Scotland to the Bank on July 28, 2009, to issue a Standstill Notice to the Note Holders of the Company's $65 million Senior Notes. Pursuant to the Standstill Notice, Note Holders are prohibited from exercising any rights or remedies in respect of collection on, set off against, marshalling of, or foreclosure on the collateral pledged by the Company to secure its obligations under the Notes for a period of 90 days. The standstill period will expire on October 27, 2009.

About Empire Resorts, Inc.

Empire Resorts owns and operates the Monticello Casino & Raceway, including slot machines and a 230-acre harness racing facility in Sullivan County, 90 miles from midtown Manhattan. For additional information, go to 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 and contractual 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 agreement with Concord Associates is not closed; (ii) the risk that financing necessary for the proposed project may not be able to be obtained because of credit factors, market conditions or other contingencies, (iii) the risk that regulatory or contractual approvals are not obtained, (iv) 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.