JERSEY CITY — The companies behind two big Downtown Jersey City eateries are bidding to lease the Casino in the Park space in Lincoln Park, which Hudson County wants to turn into a major destination.

Landmark, which owns Liberty House banquet hall and restaurant in Liberty State Park, and the owners of Montgomery Street steakhouse Liberty Prime have submitted plans to partner with the county on a new-and-improved Casino in the Park, sources with knowledge of the matter told The Jersey Journal.

The Hudson County Improvement Authority, which is overseeing the project, is scheduled to decide on the bids by May 1. The county agency envisions a new, 20,000-30,000 square foot banquet hall with a stand-alone restaurant and bar. Residents of the area, located just east of Route 440, have pressed for a banquet hall that includes space for everyday dining.

Landmark declined to comment. A request for comment from Liberty Prime was not returned.

Casino in the Park closed about a year ago after the longtime tenants’ lease expired. The county’s initial attempt to find a new operator failed when no bidders with enough cash to renovate the building stepped forward. The plan to reopen the place hit another roadblock when the county discovered the building was in worse shape than they had believed. It needs to be demolished.

To entice bidders, the HCIA plans to spend up to $6 million in taxpayer funds to build the shell of a new building where Casino in the Park now stands. The winners of the bid to operate the space would pick up the rest of the costs of outfitting the space for their needs. Lease payments would be expected to pay at least the county’s debt service for the $6 million, according to one source.

Casino in the Park opened in 1950 and for decades was run by the Sweeney family. It was the home of countless weddings, local nonprofit fundraisers and political shindigs. Frank Sinatra hosted a 50th wedding anniversary party for his parents there.

Landmark has 14 venues mostly in New Jersey, including Liberty House, a popular destination for weddings because of its location. It sits on the northeast corner of Liberty State Park, with striking views of the Hudson River, Manhattan and the Statue of Liberty. The company also owns Hudson House in Port Liberte and the Ryland Inn in Whitehouse Station.

Landmark’s owners, Frank and Jeanne Cretella, are chummy with Hudson County’s Democratic leadership.

The Cretellas have given a combined $7,900 to Hudson pols since 2013, including $2,500 to Jersey City Freeholder Bill O’Dea that year, $2,500 to Bayonne Freeholder Ken Kopacz in 2017 and $1,000 to County Clerk E. Junior Maldonado in 2017. One of their companies also gave $25,000 to Coalition for Progress, a super PAC tied to Jersey City Mayor Steve Fulop’s now-abandoned 2017 gubernatorial bid.

County politicians also spend considerable sums at Liberty House, a frequent location for fundraisers. The Hudson County Democratic Organization, chaired by the County Executive Tom DeGise’s daughter Amy, spent $30,485 to hold its annual gala there in September, campaign finance documents show. Tom DeGise holds fundraisers there often, most recently in March, at roughly $35,000 a pop.

O’Dea said because he’s friendly with the Cretellas, he has removed himself from the selection process. The freeholder said he does not believe the bid is tilted in anyone’s favor.

“At the end of the day they’ll give it to whoever the best of the companies are," O’Dea told The Jersey Journal. "And that’s the way it should be.”

Liberty Prime, located on Montgomery Street four blocks from the Hudson River waterfront, is also popular with politicians. Maldonado’s campaign spent $4,500 hosting a fundraiser there in 2017. A committee raising money for Sen. Bob Menendez spent $9,000 renting it out last year.

John Mondry, one of the men behind Liberty Prime, gave $2,600 to Maldonado in 2017.

Terrence T. McDonald may be reached at tmcdonald@jjournal.com. Follow him on Twitter @terrencemcd. Find The Jersey Journal on Facebook.