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Tue
Jul 17
2012

Don’t Make Us Beg- Let’s Build a Casino in South Philly

Last week, according to this article from the Philadelphia Inquirer, the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board decided that the second casino license originally tabbed for Philadelphia would indeed remain in the city. With that decision, speculation has begun anew about the location of the second Philadelphia casino. Could it be at Broad & Callowhill, behind the Inquirer Building, as Bart Blatstein has proposed? Could it get built on the Delaware waterfront? The Schuylkill waterfront? Market East?

We’ve been thinking about this for years, and the only location that seems to make even a little bit of sense is South Philly, in the Sports Complex.

Google Map

It makes almost too much sense. Easy access from the highway. Easy access via public transportation. It’s separated from the nearest residences by at least two blocks of parking lots. There’s a built in audience on any game day or concert night. Lots of people come here from New Jersey or the PA burbs, so the casino would actually collect tax dollars from outside the city. Tight regulations with the Special Services District would eliminate the potential for nuisance businesses to crop up in the surrounding area.

We’re pretty sure that the state law, as it’s currently written, would prohibit this location because of its proximity to Harrah’s Chester Philadelphia. But if the mayor was lobbying so hard to keep the license in Philly, couldn’t he lobby equally hard to get an exception to that law? Or to change the law? It seems like an arbitrary reason to keep the casino out of its best possible spot.

Look, we’re not saying that we love casinos. We’re not saying that we’re stoked that there’s going to be a second casino in Philadelphia. If you ask us, we were good when AC was the closest gambling destination. But if a casino is getting built here no matter what, we can’t imagine a location where it would have more success while disturbing fewer neighbors.

Xfinity Live!

How ’bout right behind Xfinity Live? Just imagine walking into the Spectrum Casino, where security guards are dressed like the Broad Street Bullies and the dealers are dressed like Disney on Ice. The possibilities are endless!

Hey Mr. Snider, want to give this casino thing one more go?

30
COMMENTS
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Posted in South Philly | Tagged , , , , , | 30 Comments
  • Nolaphilly

    The best possible spot would be in Center City, next to the Convention Center at the heart of one of the nation’s most extensive regional transit networks. For a downtown casino done right, see New Orleans.

  • Anonymous

    No chance. Harrah’s would sue and lobby and sue and lobby. 

  • developerguy

    If we must have one please make it an upscale,place  ….tables only high buy in  and dress code (black tie) with a restaurant by some bold face named chef or proprietor with an with a small upscale  hotel attached  not extremely close  to public transit …people that would take public transit to a casino in this city need not be gambling…. i say the current family court building on the parkway is a perfect candidate  for conversion…..

  • http://twitter.com/banealis Brian Nealis

    I 100% agree… and I really thought there was a remote chance when Ed Snider was part of the group behind Foxwoods.  I would love to have seen the casino incorporated into Xfinity Live!

    I think the required distance from Harrah’s is 10 miles… and per Google Maps measure tool, it is 10.1 miles from Harrah’s to the intersection of 11th and Pattison, so maybe on the SE corner of 11th and Pattison?

  • me

    How about on the waterfront south of Ikea?

  • Guest

    I hope most people will come from out of the city.  Philadelphians don’t have enough money to fritter it all away on Casinos and the ones that do know better than to gamble at crappy places in Philly.

  • Mba19067

    Philadelphia orchestra back to the Academy of Music and turn the Kimmel Center into a casino. It looks like a casino.

  • http://www.facebook.com/robert.young.750 Robert Young

    Pretty much.  The zone of exclusion is there to protect their business from competition, and now that we have casinos in this state, we have a well-funded casino lobby.

  • 3rd&Brown

    Black tie. LMFAO.

  • http://planphilly.com/eyesonthestreet/2012/07/18/toll-condos-near-headhouse-moving-ahead-3-million-pa-grant-for-new-media-hq-at-strawbridges-inside-the-robert-morris-stadium-area-casino-pa-gaming-reve Toll condos near Headhouse moving ahead | $3 million PA grant for new media HQ at Strawbridge’s | inside the Robert Morris | stadium area casino? | PA gaming revenue up 31%

    [...] Naked Philly thinks the city’s second casino site ought to be in South Philly’s stadium district… The logic: If we are going to get another casino, the stadium area is the best location because of its excellent transportation access, huge parcels, and relative isolation from nearby neighborhoods. [...]

  • Arbiter

    PPA impound lot and an active (and expanding) port. We’re looking for vacant land.

    I love the Sports Center idea; the best spot would be on the old Vet site, IMO. But it’s exactly 10 miles away from Harrah’s, so–who knows?

  • Anonymous

    Also this.

  • http://hiddencityphila.org/2012/07/north-philly-mural-recreated-in-history-museum/ North Philly Mural Recreated In History Museum | Hidden City Philadelphia

    [...] Philly, although not entirely ecstatic about Philadelphia retaining its second casino license, feels that th… seeing as it is close enough to major highways and would disrupt less local [...]

  • Phillycb

    The Disney Hole is crying for development

  • loveisintheair

    oh foo hoo heeee!  put the casino at the gallery, get tons of security guards to keep the thugs away and have bullet proof shuttle vans for pickup to and from the casino!  sounds like a plan philly stay classy!  Will flash mobs be part of the players card perks?

  • Zoomboomboom

    Ive said it elsewhere – turn the SS UNITED STATES into a floating casino.

  • http://www.facebook.com/bobbydombroski Bobby Dombroski

    The Harrah’s in New Orleans IS NOT a good example. 

  • http://www.facebook.com/bobbydombroski Bobby Dombroski

    you are not the only one. I thought that was an amazing idea when they tried bringing that to the table for discussion. Unfortunately, none of the big wigs liked it.

  • barryg

    An upscale, mixed used (with entertianment, etc) development at Market East would be the best place. Near Convention Center, tourists, the rest of downtown, and fill up a lot of crappy space on Market St with activity.

  • http://twitter.com/brianbrews Brian Marsh

    From what I see online it appears this idea has a lot of support, including from Gerry Lenfest… but maybe not quite enough support.

  • AceHighFlush

    My handle comes from my occupation; professional poker player.  I take a big hit on taxes every year because I love living in this city; I’m far from alone in making that choice.  I would love to not have to drive (bleah) to Chester (urk), Bensalem (hurl), or AC (dryheave) in order to play poker with my neighbors, but that’s what I do now.  And I have no illusions that anyone at all, will drive past Parx from Bucks or past Harrah’s from Delco, no matter how much any Philadelphia casino would bend over backwards for them.  Casual gambling is segmented by convenience and convenience only.  Harrah’s would fight a Broad/Pattison casino just to maintain its positional advantage in Gloucester and southern Camden counties, where it’s faster to hop over the Commodore Barry Bridge to Chester than fight through traffic to SugarHouse.

  • AceHighFlush

    Yes, because what failed to work in the Bellagio, the most upscale casino in Las Vegas, is going to fly in Philadelphia.  In other news, let’s check in on the ongoing snowfall in Hades.

  • http://www.facebook.com/bobbydombroski Bobby Dombroski

    The idea does have a lot of online support. And One would think with Gerry Lenfest in your corner, things might happen. But, unfortunately, it is still not enough to win over the powers to be. 

  • http://www.facebook.com/bobbydombroski Bobby Dombroski

    Well said. 

  • veggie

    put it up in the “norfeast” where it belongs.

  • Korgull the Exterminator

    The people of South Philly aren’t a bunch of whiney prissy crybabies like you’ll find in other neighborhoods.  They would welcome it and the economic stimulus that it would bring.  But why try to bring logic into the conversation.

  • spjkck

    one casino on the river is more than enough. after Sugar House opened there were muggings, theft, etc. we don’t need any more of that here.

  • Astralmilkman

    How about NO. look, sugarhouse is a ugly BOX ! If your gonna put another casino
    In Philly it should be in one of two places. Either the inquire site which would work well ( although I would worry about traffic ) or my favorite THE SS UNITED STATES..
    NOW THAT WOULD BE GREAT..reusing that beautiful grand ship would give the casino something that no other casino has , CLASS , HISTORY , A real oe of a kind
    Experince. Most casinos are BORING , CLASSLESS , Q UICKLY FOREGOTTEN
    Once you leave the betting floor. But not this ship.. Imagine a casino inside the titanic
    TRULLY A ONE OF A KIND…..PHILLY SHOULD NOT LET THIS SHIP OR OPPERTUNITY SLIP BY

  • Astralmilkman

    The revel in A.C. Is failing because it’s set up just for high rollers , forgetting ac is mainly a middle class casino spot. So how in the HELL could black tie work here in Philly….. You could have a private casino club within the regular casino , that would work.

  • http://nakedphilly.com/south-philly/another-potential-casino-location-is-revealed/ Another Potential Casino Location Is Revealed | NakedPhilly

    [...] Inquirer, we learned about another potential location for Philadelphia’s second casino. Last summer, we suggested the Sports Complex as a location that could work for this (not really welcome, but what can we do) [...]

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