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It turned out to be quite a day. Halfway through the meeting, Fishtown resident Jethro Heiko, followed by Matt Ruben and Anne Dicker each interupted the meeting in turn to object to the Gaming Board's policy of not allowing members of the public to speak.
View a video of the community leaders' attempt to address the Gaming Board.
The Gaming Board conducted its meeting in an ornate hearing room controlled by the Senate. The room was not large enough to accomodate everyone and Hallwatch estimates 100 people were forced to stand. The Board was seated on a raised dias and separated from the audience by a wooden bar.
After the meeting neighbors engaged in a variety of fact finding misssions. Some visited with their law makers while a group of four accompanied Hallwatch webmaster Ed Goppelt over to the offices of the Gaming Board to conduct an open records audit.
The bus trip was organized by the two grass roots organizations to grow out of the casino issue NABR (Neighbors Allied for the Best Riverfront) and the MCA (Multi-Community Alliance in Northwest Phila)
NABR was founded by a group of Fishtown residents who were concerned about the casinos proposed for their neighborhood. NABR has avoided taking a NIMBY posture, focusing instead on the larger picture: the need for comprehensive planning, for resident input in decisions concerning the casinos etc.
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Here Heiko addresses the press conference held after the Gaming Board meeting.
Prior to the trip Fishtown resident Jethro Heiko informed PGCB Chair Tad Decker in this letter that he was asserting his right under the Pennsylvania Sunshine Act to speak at the Board's meeting. Both the New Jersey and Nevada Gaming Boards permit the public to address their meetings.
Decker informed Heiko by letter that he: 1) had no legal right to address the Board and 2) had already addressed the Board once at its public input hearings held in April 3) the Board was not inclined to let him or any other member of the public speak at its meetings.
Heiko said Decker was entitled to his opinion and vowed to carry out his plan to raise a formal objection during the meeting. He did just that. In front of 300 people, Heiko objected to not being permitted to speak. Matt Ruben and Anne Dicker then stood up in succession to object. A grim Mary Colins briefly sparred with the neighbors before recessing the meeting for 15 minutes.
View a video of the attempt to speak. After the recess the disembodied voice of Tad Decker called Heiko and the other community leaders unprofessional for attempting to speak at the meeting. View a video.
Heiko and the others who attempted to speak at the meeting did so in the mistaken belief that their actions were protected by the Sunshine Act. They were not. Legal experts contacted by Hallwatch agreed with the Gaming Board: as it stands now, State government is under no legal obligation to let members of the public speak at its meetings.
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Anticipation about the meeting had been building for several weeks as it looked briefly like a persistent disagreement between Boardmembers regarding whether to have one or two lists of suppliers might delay the roll out of slots. Prior to the meeting, Chairman Tad Decker said the future of slots would be in question if the Board was not able to pass supplier regulations.
Despite the importance of the meeting, Decker did not attend in person. Press aide Nick Hays told reporters afterwards that personal business kept Decker from attending. Instead Decker participated in the meeting and subsequent press conference via speakerphone from an undisclosed location.
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"He clearly looked like he was uncontrollably angry," said a neighbor who witnessed the incident. "He got up like I get up when I want to smack someone."
Gaming Board spokesman Nick Hays did not respond to an email and phone call requesting comment on the incident.
To date four Gaming Board employees have been arrested following incidents involving violent behavior fueled by alcohol.
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Hallwatch estimates that 100 people jammed the aisles of Hearing Room 1 in the North Office Building, making an emergency evacuation all but impossible and endangering everyone in the room.
Chairman Decker guaranteed a hefty turnout with his broad hints to the press that the future of gaming might be decided at this meeting. Although the Gaming Board knew that many people would attend this meeting, it chose to hold the meeting in this smaller space rather than the larger State Museum.
According to its mission statement, the Gaming Board's number one priority is supposed to be "to protect the citizens of Pennsylvania"
Communications Director Nick Hays did not respond to a phone call and email asking for comment. Bradley Swartz Chief of Land Management for the General Services Dept. referred questions about the maximum legal occupancy of the room to the Senate, which he said had jurisdiction over the room. Senate Facilities Manager Carl Henke who is responsible for enforcing the fire code in Senate controlled rooms did not respond to a message left with his assistant.
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View a video of the skit.
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About 4-6 members of the media covered the press conference.
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Later in the day, Claire, 10, and her family met with Christopher Craig in the offices of his boss, state Sen. Vincent J. Fumo. Craig, a lawyer, is the author of the Gaming Act. Claire told neighbors about her meeting with Craig on the bus trip home. She said that Craig was going to say the F word, but caught himself just in time. Also present at the Craig meeting were Fishtown residents Jethro Heiko and Meredith Warner.
