Sep 10, 2008 11:40 pm US/Eastern
Casino Co. Eyes Center City Location
PHILADELPHIA (AP) ―
Slot machines could someday be ringing a few blocks from the Liberty Bell, Independence Hall and the spot where Thomas Jefferson wrote the Declaration of Independence.
After facing stiff neighborhood opposition at its original site, a casino developer said Wednesday it's considering building its $670 million slots parlor at a downtown location just a few blocks west of Philadelphia's historic neighborhood.
The Foxwoods group, led by the Mashantucket Pequot Indians of Connecticut, is looking into building the casino at a downtown mall called The Gallery at Market East. Michael Thomas, the tribe's chairman, said the site is better than the original waterfront location in South Philadelphia because it is near existing shops, restaurants and mass transit lines.
Thomas said his group is talking to the company that owns The Gallery, and looking at a 300,000 square-foot area a few blocks down the street from where Jefferson wrote the Declaration, and where Independence Hall and the Liberty Bell draw hundreds of thousands of visitors each year.
"This is a serious proposal that will get serious consideration," Mayor Michael Nutter said at a news conference with Gov. Ed Rendell, Thomas and others.
Nutter said he was not concerned about the prospect of having a casino, hotel and other development in a retail district so close to one of the country's most historic areas. If the site is chosen, he said, the city would ensure that there would be no garish signs or lighting that would mar the historic area.
"There's a fair amount of separation," Nutter said. "Unless you know it's there, you won't know it's there."
Community opposition has stalled plans for the Foxwoods casino in South Philadelphia, as well as a casino planned by Sugarhouse in the Fishtown/Northern Liberties neighborhood; both sites are on the Delaware River waterfront. Several weeks ago, Foxwoods said it was willing to consider other sites.
In July 2004, the Legislature passed a gaming law that legalized as many as 61,000 slot machines across the state, including the two freestanding casinos in Philadelphia. If the casinos open, Philadelphia would become the nation's largest city with casino gambling.
Along with the necessary city approvals, the proposed change in the Foxwoods casino location would need approval from the state gaming board. Rendell said discussions over the new site are ongoing and he hopes to know more in a month or two.
Foxwoods' decision to consider the downtown site brought quick opposition from casino opponents who have been fighting the projects for years. They say the new site is still too close to residential neighborhoods and would cause congestion in the historic neighborhood.
"You're not going to get more tourists for a city that's known for two things, which is history and gun violence, by bringing a casino to downtown," said Daniel Hunter, a spokesman for the group Casino-Free Philadelphia.
The location is also just a few blocks from Chinatown, where residents successfully fought plans to build sports stadiums nearly a decade ago. Chinatown residents and other casino opponents packed Wednesday's news conference to voice their frustration.
Helen Gym, a board member of the community group Asian Americans United, said that it feels like history is repeating itself for Chinatown.
"We would have thought that officials would have learned the lessons of that," Gym said.
But the National Park Service, which runs the Liberty Bell and Independence Hall, said it was withholding judgment on the latest proposal.
Jane Cowley, a spokeswoman for Independence National Historical Park, said she would need to know more specific information on the plans.
"If it helps bring in tourists to the area, it could actually help us," Cowley said. "With any new neighbor, we're going to protect park interests."
(© 2009 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
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