Construction executive and avid horse bettor helps rebuild Belmont Park
Roger Cettina, a senior vice president at AECOM Tishman, oversaw the renovation of Belmont Park while maintaining a successful high-stakes horse-betting hobby.
Senior vice president Roger Cettina of AECOM Tishman led the contract to rebuild Belmont Park, a venue he frequented as a teenager in Tenafly, New Jersey. Alongside his construction duties, Cettina has been a competitive horse bettor, placing second in the 2013 National Horseplayers Championship and again in 2015, winning sizable cash prizes that funded a new Lexus for his wife Wendy. His construction résumé includes work on the Goldman Sachs headquarters, Javits Center renovations, and the Manhattan West development near Hudson Yards.
In 2024 he accepted the Belmont Park project despite moving 75 miles south to Sea Bright, arranging weekday stays in friends’ basements in West Hempstead and the Bronx. He continues to travel to the site on weekends, describing the experience as unique for someone in his trade. Cettina estimates a lifetime net profit of about $300,000 from betting, which he says is insufficient to retire in the high-cost New York-New Jersey area.
Why it matters
The story shows how a construction leader balances a demanding project with a lucrative hobby, highlighting personal finance and work-life dynamics.
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