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Foxwoods Casino gets better deal than SugarHouse
By Ed Goppelt
Monday, 08/06/07
(1186429725174)
The state Gaming Control Board took a one-size fits all approach to crafting the conditions the Philadelphia casinos will be expected to follow in exchange for their license. A copy of the SugarHouse Statement of Conditions obtained by Hallwatch today shows that it contains 59 conditions, the first 51 of which contain boilerplate identical to Foxwoods' conditions.
In certain respects SugarHouse appears not to have gotten as good a deal as Foxwoods. For example, the Gaming Board put a limit of $1 million on payments to affected neighbors in its July agreement with Foxwoods; SugarHouse's agreement, which was consummated in April, contains no such limit.
SugarHouse Casino did not ask the Gaming Board to limit its payments to neighbors according to spokesman Dan Fee. "We have always wanted to be good neighbors," said Fee. "We have pledged a minimum of $1 million per year. It may increase with inflation. We are not offering more than that."
Whether Foxwoods Casino asked the Gaming Board to put a ceiling on its payments to its South Philadelphia neighbors is unknown. Hallwatch left two messages for Foxwoods' spokesperson Maureen Garrity, but she did not call back. A call to state Gaming Board spokesman Doug Harbach was not immediately returned.
The conditions that apply only to SugarHouse require the Casino to: purchase the land for its casino as called for in its Agreement of Sale, and to complete its interim and permanent facilities "as soon as it is practicable."
There are 9 conditions that apply only to Foxwoods. Among other things Foxwoods agrees to forego its sovereign immunity as an independent Indian nation; investors Ron Rubin and Ed Snyder agree that their profits from the casino will always be donated to charity; and Foxwoods agrees to pay its "fair share" of the costs of a new I-95 exit ramp. By contrast SugarHouse agreed "to fully fund all traffic improvements and mitigation measures proposed by HSP Gaming during the licensing suitability process."
Hallwatch would like to thank the state House of Representatives Committee on Gaming Oversight for its assistance obtaining a copy of the SugarHouse Statement of Conditions that is the subject of this story. The state Gaming Board to date has ignored Hallwatch's informal and formal requests for the SugarHouse conditions.