Dec 20, 2006 2:19 pm US/Eastern
Pa. Awards Licenses For Slot Machines
HARRISBURG, Pa. (CBS) ―
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The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board has awarded Pittsburgh slots license to PITG Gaming, who will build the Majestic Star casino.
KDKA
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Site of future Foxwoods Casino in South Philadelphia.
CBS
State gambling regulators Wednesday cleared the way for Philadelphia to become the nation's largest city with a casino but rejected a bid for a proposal for a slots parlor near the historic Gettysburg battlefield.
The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board awarded two Philadelphia licenses to groups led by billionaire developer Neil G. Bluhm and by Connecticut-based Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation.
Philadelphia Mayor John Street attended Wednesday's announcement and was pleased with the outcome.
"I actually think this is a great day for the city. There are some of us who have believed that the addition of gaming to the great array of amenities we have would be a good thing for the city," he said.
Northeastern Pennsylvania businessman Louis A. DeNaples has won a slot-machine gambling license for a Pocono Mountain resort, while Las Vegas-based casino operator Las Vegas Sands Corp. won a slot-machine gambling license for a Bethlehem, Pa. casino.
Bethlehem Mayor John Callahan was on the edge of his seat while the decision was announced.
"It's very gratifying, it's been a long run for us and we're just very happy with the result," he said.
Among the applications the board rejected were a hotly contested proposal by a group led by Connecticut-based Silver Point Capital LP for a casino near the Gettysburg battlefield, an application by Donald Trump's Atlantic City, N.J.-based casino company for a casino in Philadelphia and a proposal by St. Louis-based casino operator Isle of Capri Casinos Inc. for a casino in Pittsburgh.
The board awarded a license in Pittsburgh to Detroit-based casino developer Don H. Barden.
Barden formed Majestic Star Casino, LLC 13 years ago and now they will build their fifth casino in Pittsburgh.
Barden says the casino's modern design and sparkling views will be an asset to a section of the Ohio River that has been largely left out of the city's riverfront development.
The focal point of the casino will be a 110 foot cylindrical glass atrium, which will house an indoor waterfall.
The facility will also have four restaurants, three lounges, three bars, a 1,000 seat riverfront amphitheater, and the casino will house 3,000 slot machines.
Barden says he will pledge $7.5 million a year for 30 years to build a new arena for the Penguins as part of the so-called "Plan B."
He also says he will spend whatever is necessary to pay for traffic changes to make the facility more accessible.
The gaming board awarded 11 permanent slots licenses, each allowing as many as 5,000 machines. Six licenses are earmarked for the state's horse-racing tracks, while 13 applicants competed for the remaining five stand-alone licenses.
So far, two racetracks — Mohegan Sun at Pocono Downs and Philadelphia Park — already have opened slots parlors under conditional licenses, while racetracks in Chester and near Erie are expected to open slots parlors in the next two months.
Gov. Ed Rendell rejuvenated a 25-year drive to legalize casino-style gambling in Pennsylvania by promising that slots revenue would help reduce property taxes and revive the state's declining horse-racing industry. The law passed in 2004 authorized up to 61,000 slot machines at 14 sites.
(© 2006 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
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