sugarhouse casino to the met philadelphia

Activists invoked Pennsylvania’s “Sunshine Act”-a transparency law-in an appeal to the board for greater transparency. Casino-Free’s next action was to attend a PGCB public hearing in Harrisburg, the state capital, on June 28. The PGCB refused to extend the comment period, which ended the next day, but nearly 3,000 anti-casino comments were submitted nevertheless. It asked for greater transparency in the casino permitting process, and for the PGCB public comment to be extended.

On June 1, 2006, a new organization, Casino-Free Philadelphia, was formed to coordinate anti-casino efforts in various areas of the city.Ĭasino-Free Philadelphia began with a demonstration on June 1, attended by members of the constituent neighborhood organizations. As the permitting process began, Philadelphia community members voiced concern to the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board (PGCB) about the intrusion of casinos into their neighborhoods. The location, size, management, and other details remained open-ended. The bill, Act 71, legalized the construction of 15 new casinos in the state, two of which would be chosen from among five proposals in the city of Philadelphia. Seeking extra tax revenue to bolster a struggling state budget, the United States state of Pennsylvania passed a bill in 2004 authorizing casinos in the state. The Pennsylvania Supreme Court made two decisions in favor of casino developers, both questionable in their legality. Governor Ed Rendell was a vocal supporter of casinos in Philadelphia and elsewhere in Pennsylvania. Of the councilmembers, Frank DiCicco was the most visible face of opposition to, and later support of, the casino. However, it too eventually supported the SugarHouse project. It voted unanimously to place a question on the ballot regarding the establishment of casino-free zones, for example. Philadelphia City Council was an ally of the anti-casino movement for several years. Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter pledged to oppose casino development during his campaign for office, and presented some procedural hurdles to developers, but eventually supported the scaled-down SugarHouse Casino. At times the Philadelphia City Council supported efforts to prevent the opening of casinos in the city. Under pressure from Casino-Free Philadelphia, State Senator Vincent Fumo introduced legislative amendments that gave the city permission to enforce zoning laws for casinos.

Sugarhouse casino to the met philadelphia