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Announcement Coming on Second Casino License For Philadelphia

By Pat Loeb

HARRISBURG, Pa. (CBS) -- The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board has called a special meeting for November 18th to announce who, if anyone, will get the second casino license in the city of Philadelphia.

The decision has been a long time coming, but opposition to a second casino in the city remains strong.

The board has been considering for more than eight months which of four bidders will get the second license, after extensive hearings and months of public comment, and they are remaining tight-lipped about which proposal they favor.

Bidders who were willing to comment say they have had no communication from the board.

"We're just very pleased that the board appears to be reaching a decision soon," says Frank Keel, who represents the Provence, a casino proposed for the former Inquirer building on North Broad Street.  "It's been a long process. We believe Philadelphia needs and deserves a second casino."

Officials at Philadelphia's existing casino, Sugarhouse, believes the opposite.  General manager Wendy Hamilton  says they have filed a motion to reopen the public record because by now, she says, it is woefully out of date.

"The industry in this region has been turned entirely upside down, and what has transpired in the last several months is really critical to the decision," she tells KYW Newsradio.

The board has declined to comment on the Sugarhouse motion.

 

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