Hong Kong exhibit flaunts more than 800 Labubus, New York City’s first full-scale casino is expected to open this spring, and a lawsuit is filed to stop White House ballroom construction. All that and more in this week’s Five on Friday.
Three New York City casinos get the green light
The forthcoming Bally’s Bronx casino; rendering courtesy of Bally’s Bronx
This week, elected officials gave developers approval to move forward with plans to launch three (3!) casinos across New York’s five boroughs. Dezeen reports that the New York State Gaming Commission awarded casino licenses to a trio of projects originally included among eight proposals. The new-builds will include the Hard Rock Metropolitan Park in Queens, designed by SHoP Architects and Field Operations; Resorts World New York City in Queens, designed by Perkins Eastman; and Bally’s Bronx Casino, designed by HKS and Gensler. Resorts World is projected to open as soon as March 2026, while Hard Rock and Bally’s are slated for completion in 2030.
Labubus star in new Hong Kong exhibit
The Interactive Zone at “MONSTERS BY MONSTERS: NOW AND THEN” showcases Labubu’s collaboration with Pop Mart; photo by How2work
Everyone’s favorite little monsters are wrapping up their landmark year as the key centerpiece of a new exhibition. That’s right—Labubus are celebrating their 10th anniversary as part of the Asia Society Hong Kong’s “MONSTERS BY MONSTERS: NOW AND THEN” exhibit. Hypebae reports that, following a successful run in both Shanghai and Taipei, the show will immerse new audiences in the world of Labubu. The exhibition traces both their origin in Norse mythology, their design by artist Kasing Lung, and their overall aesthetic appeal through themed zones including a designer toy area. “MONSTERS BY MONSTERS” is open to the public through January 4th.
National Gingerbread House Competition crowns its 2025 winner
The Tiny Gnome Builders by Mary Hulsman, grand prize winner of the 2025 National Gingerbread House Competition; photo courtesy of Omni Grove Park Inn & Spa
What would the holiday season be without a little healthy competition? The National Gingerbread House Competition—presented by the Omni Grove Park Inn & Spa in Asheville, North Carolina—crowned this year’s winner (the program’s first iteration since the devastation wrought by Hurricane Helene last year), Dwell reports. Mary Hulsman of Concord, North Carolina was dubbed the 2025 Grand Prize Winner (Adult) for “The Tiny Gnome Builders,” which depicted a whimsical fairytale scene. Prizes are also awarded to winners in the Teen, Youth, and Child categories—however, this writer must assume a few of them had help from their parents.
Preservationists to Trump: STOP!
Photo courtesy of Adobe Stock
The National Trust for Historic Preservation has filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia with the intention of halting construction on the new White House ballroom. The Trust argues that the project failed to comply with required federal review and authorization processes before moving forward, Archinect reports. The filing asserts that plans for the new ballroom have not been submitted to the National Capital Planning Commission, a requirement under the National Capital Planning Act. Moreover, the lawsuit claims that the government failed to prepare an adequate Environmental Assessment or Environmental Impact Statement under the National Environmental Policy Act. Also, fun fact, Congress did not authorize construction, which is a requirement for any new building proposed within a federal park in Washington, DC. No word yet from the Trump administration, but considering how little credence they give the laws of the country they “govern,” it’s hard to imagine they’ll care.
HD reveals the best hotel debuts of the year
Belden House & Mews in Litchfield, Connecticut; photo by Read McKendree
As we wrap up 2025, Hospitality Design looks back to heap a little extra praise upon some of this year’s standout hotel projects. Editors aggregated their 50 favorite openings from the past year to highlight a range of diversity across 2,595 hotel debuts. Spanning scale and style, standout projects include immersive wildlife retreats in Kenya, striking new-buildings in the UAE, locally rooted Caribbean escapes, quaint getaways in the UK countryside, and a range of thoughtful debuts and reinventions across the U.S.
That concludes Five on Friday for the year. Have a safe holiday and see you back very soon!
