Placing Bets

slot to trot: Like it or not, slot machines are coming to Philly, but don't expect the next Borgata (above).
Photo By: Michael T. Regan

by Mary F. Patel

At last week's Philadelphia Gaming Advisory Task Force (PGATF) public hearing in the Seaport Museum on Penn's Landing [see "Coming Up Lemons," p. 13], many were surprised to learn that gambling already passed the state House and Senate in July 2004.

House Bill 2330, the Pennsylvania Race Horse Development and Gaming Act, and Senate Bill 100, the Homeowner Tax Relief Act, were designed to fund public schools and ease the burden of property taxes for homeowners in the rest of the state. But not in Philadelphia, where the gaming revenue will be used to reduce the city wage tax — a whopping savings of $280 or a 0.7 percent increase in income for a family earning $40,000 a year. ( If the family itemizes their deductions -- as most homeowners do — that $280 will be subject to federal taxes and the savings will be less.)

Gaming is coming — like it or not — and two slot parlors are definitely planned for the city. As it was explained by the PGATF, it will be slot parlors, not high-end casinos. But what's the difference?

Actually, very little. The only things a full-fledged casino have that a slot parlor doesn't are table games like blackjack, poker, roulette and craps. A slot parlor can be just as ornate as the gaudiest casino with entertainment, have booze (free or otherwise), spas, pools — even hotel rooms. One difference is that slot parlors are expected to take more money from older people than a casino would. Table games appeal to a younger demographic.

PGATF is a 47-member task force created and appointed by Mayor John Street that will look at the social and economic impact on the city and make recommendations on minimizing the negative impacts. They will not be able to make decisions on locations, licensing, contracts or hiring. That is up to the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board.

PGATF will soon give Street a preliminary report including comments from hired consultants, and, in September, a final report with recommendations.

The state Gaming Control Board has seven voting members handpicked by the governor and high-ranking members from the House and Senate — Democrats and Republicans alike.

Everybody who voiced opinions at the forum echoed the theme of "not in my backyard."

David Auspitz, chair of the city Zoning Board and a member of PGATF, said that while the city will have little say about the parlors within the borders of its building, the city will have a lot to say about advertising and related businesses everywhere else.

Social issues like gambling addiction were addressed. The PGATF representatives said that they expect between 2 and 4 percent of visitors to the slot parlors to become addicted.

One Chinatown resident, speaking through an interpreter, read to the audience from a Chinese newspaper about a man in Queens, N.Y., who killed his wife because she didn't work enough to support his gambling habit.

Three avenues are being examined for parlor sites: along Market Street in Center City, along the Delaware River and the Budd site in Nicetown.

"There is a lot of industrial land along the river that is both city and privately owned," said Micah Mahjoubian, director of operations for PGATF and an assistant to mayoral aide George Burrell.

Mahjoubian recalled an earlier town meeting with Kensington residents where one man said that he thought that a slot casino would raise property values.

If a slot parlor has to happen, many in Center City would like to see it in the Navy Yard. The Navy Yard is a Keystone Opportunity Improvement Zone (KOZ) and the Food Distribution Center will be moving there from Packer Avenue. With the tax advantages that KOZ designation brings, the Navy Yard is even more attractive to slots developers and there is the possibility that roads could be widened.

Members of PGTAF said they expect to hear opposition at the neighborhood forums, "but our polling shows that most people in the city support a gaming facility somewhere here," said Mahjoubian.