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TRENTON — A venture capitalist from Massachusetts has been quietly meeting with leading New Jersey politicians in recent months, pushing a proposal for a casino and hotel rising 95 floors above New York Harbor.

The $4.6 billion project would also feature residences, a 107,500-seat motor sports stadium and what is billed as the largest Ferris wheel in the world.

But there’s one catch — it would not be in Atlantic City, the only city where New Jersey has allowed gambling since its legalization almost 40 years ago. Rather, it would rise in Jersey City, with sweeping views of Manhattan and sit almost eyeball to eyeball with the new 104-story World Trade Center just across the harbor.

"I’m excited about the potential for a world-class facility that includes a casino, hotel and convention center as well as the largest ferris wheel in the world all located next to the best park in New Jersey," Mayor Steve Fulop said. "I still need more information regarding the racetrack to be confident it will not harm Liberty State Park. This development would create 25,000 jobs and over $5 billion of investment, which would be one of the largest construction projects in the United States."

Even a former mayor of Atlantic City, state Sen. Jim Whelan (D-Atlantic), accepted the inevitability of the project, or one like it.

"I’m sure there are a lot of people who will take me to task for daring to even consider casinos outside of Atlantic City," Whelan said. "I’d love to be wrong, but I think that’s the reality of where we are."

The man behind the proposal is Paul Fireman, a former chief executive of Reebok who runs Fireman Capital Partners in Boston, and whose wealth Forbes placed in 2006 at $1.1 billion.

Fireman has met with several lawmakers about his proposal, according to two who provided details to The Star-Ledger. But Fireman himself did not return calls and emails seeking comment.

"It’s huge," said state Sen. Raymond Lesniak (D-Union), who has met with Fireman. "It has the wow factor ... It will blow away Macau as a destination place for gaming."

According to the lawmakers, the casino would be situated near the waterfront, next to the Liberty National Golf Course, which Fireman built in 2006.

Assemblyman Ralph Caputo (D-Essex), a former casino executive and chairman of the Assembly Tourism, Gaming and Arts Committee, said he, too, had discussed the project with Fireman.

"When companies or investors lay out a... plan like that — an expensive, massive project — it very possibly can work," Caputo said.

The proposal is in its infancy, and many of the details — including how it would connect with NJ Transit’s nearby light rail system — were not available. But mega projects — like the trouble-plagued American Dream, formerly known as Xanadu — often don’t end up as originally planned, if at all.

Then there’s the huge obstacle in its path: Opening a casino anywhere outside Atlantic City would require the approval of New Jersey voters to amend the state constitution.

In 2011, Gov. Chris Christie and lawmakers put a five-year plan in place to revive Atlantic City, which began hemorrhaging profits once casinos started opening in neighboring states. And despite an infusion of money from the state, the resort is still struggling, with two casinos closing their doors so far this year and another filing for bankruptcy.

Christie and Senate President Stephen Sweeney (D-Gloucester), after years steadfastly refusing to allow casino gambling anywhere else in the state, are starting to relent.

Sweeney said last week he was willing to consider putting forth a constitutional amendment for voters to approve to allow gambling elsewhere in the state 2015 — as long as it included a way to help Atlantic City.

For his part, Christie said last week he was "happy to have that conversation" with Sweeney.

While Sweeney declined to comment specifically on the Jersey City proposal, he did say that "if we’re going to look at opening (gambling) up, it could be in Jersey City or somewhere else up north where a casino could be beneficial."

Whelan, the former Atlantic City mayor, said he would like future legislation to require any new North Jersey casino operators to also open a casino in Atlantic City, restrict the gaming expansion only to North Jersey, and to make sure revenue makes its way south in the same way that Atlantic City casinos funded projects around the state for years.

Until now, those in favor of expanding gambling into North Jersey have generally wanted to build a casino in the Meadowlands. Lesniak said he would still like to see that to happen, though it would serve a different market.

"The Meadowlands would co-exist," he said. "They really would have two separate attractions. The Meadowlands would be more of an average day player, whereas this would attract the high rollers from around the world."

He said up to $1 billion in revenue from two casinos over 10 years would be devoted to transforming Atlantic City from a past-its-prime gambling mecca into an all-around tourist destination. Lesniak added that the Jersey City proposal, like any other casino proposed outside of Atlantic City casino, would have to compete for a license under the terms laid out in future legislation.

"There’s a lot invested in Atlantic City," Lesniak said, "and rather than this proposal leaving it high and dry, it actually is a means for it to be saved."

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