Casinos

As casino companies and government officials continue to claim that putting predatory gambling institutions in the heart of our city will benefit us (and a month after Temple University Health Systems shut down one of the last remaining hospitals in the city that accepted all Medicaid plans), check out these stories of health care crisis from the people of Atlantic City. The first casino in Atlantic City opened in 1978, with the promise of revitalizing the city's economy. But as I watched these interviews in "Health Care Crisis U.S.A."--some of them shot literally in the shadow of the Taj Mahal casino--I wondered: revitalized for who?

Late last week we got word that the City Council Rules Committee cancelled tomorrow's meeting which for months was billed as the hearing that would move Sugarhouse casino forward. Due to continued opposition to both casinos the Sugarhouse casino asked to cancel this meeting as they still have not been successful at forcing the various community groups they need to get on board to the table on their terms. Check out www.casinofreephila.org to learn more. And please sign up to join us next Tuesday. We are taking a trip to Scranton to shut down the PA Gaming Control Board hearing. Training is Monday night. Please join us.

I left up the following post as I think it provides some helpful background information. In April 2006 when we were first reaching out and getting the lay of the land when it came to the casinos being proposed in Philly's neighborhoods we were told that there was nothing we could do and that casinos would break ground by Spring 2007. With fall 2007 just getting started the casinos, backed by some of the biggest names in the legal and political donor circles in this city, continue to be responded to with organized opposition. In the past few months this opposition has grown and I am writing to encourage you to join us. Just last week residents shut down the Gaming Control Board hearing that was taking place in Philly and a few dozen citizens went to the Governor's house to pay him a visit-the Governor afterall has been the biggest booster and champion for this disaster.

In the past few months we have learned from a state agency (PICA) that casinos will cost at least one job lost for every job that they create and that casinos will cost the City $200 million due to increased crime (money that is not planed for in any City budget being proposed). We have elected officials, including the Governor, talking about resiting casinos outside of residential neighborhoods (which would reduce some costs and preserve the quality of life in Philly's neighborhoods) and the head of the PA Gaming Control Board, Tad Decker resigned his post to return to Cozen O'Conner law firm, which represents Sugarhouse casino company (the company behind the proposed casino in Northern Liberties/Fishtown).

Casino-Free Philadelphia calls on supporters to gather at City Hall on June 13th to demand that City Council vote against zoning bills legalizing the construction of SugarHouse casino within two hundred feet of a residential community.

At the same City Council Rules Committee hearing, we will ask them to send the 1,500-foot buffer zone - supported by the majority of Philadelphians - to council for passage. In our Philly's Ballot Box election, 95% of the voters expressed their support of this buffer.

The pro-SugarHouse bills were introduced by a lame-duck at-large Councilman at the request of a lame-duck Mayor and Sugarhouse, and in direct contradiction of the overwhelming public consensus that casinos do not belong in residential neighborhoods.

With your help, we can and will make a difference on the outcome of this vote.

PHILADELPHIA'S BALLOT BOX

They expected us to give up when they threatened our vote. Instead, we will implement the most ambitious voting campaign in recent Philadelphia history.

If the referendum is taken off the ballot, we will hold our own election. We will set up tables at polling locations on May 15th so that people can vote on ballot question #1.

We call it: Philadelphia's ballot box.

Atlantic city is concerned about casino profits are dropping and they are worried all these new casinos (like Philadelphia Park) are keeping folks from taking the trip to the shore. So they are spending more money to try to attract people back to the casinos like more fancy restaurants and "sexier" younger women working in the casinos, similar to Philadelphia Park Casino where they asked applicants to where stilettos to the interview. Another thing they mention in the article is that one fifth of the money that is intended for economic development across the city has been going back to

I happen to come across this Metro article from yesterday's paper. It explains what the judge ruled about the signatures and talks about poll taken by casino free Philadelphia. So now 12 votes are needed instead of 9 because they don;t have the signatures. Don;t forget to write letters to your your council person about supporting the referendum by the 15th. "The public' wager"

Slot foes tout survey: 79 percent oppose casinos

by josh cornfield / metro philadelphia

MAR 8, 2007

CITY HALL - A court ruled against them Tuesday — throwing out 27,000 signatures they said they got for an anti-casino ballot question — but activists yesterday unveiled a poll that showed their support in the court of public opinion.

By Anne Dicker, Jethro Heiko, Daniel Hunter Friday, 03/02/07 (1172844296882) Today Sugarhouse Casino's lawyers "in collaboration" with Foxwoods Casino's attorneys announced a challenge to the 27,254 citizen signatures supporting a Charter Amendment. These signatures were gathered across Philadelphia by city residents seeking to give Philadelphians a chance to vote on whether or not casinos should be built nearby residential neighborhoods, schools, places of worship, and other residential-use facilities.

It can't be fun to be in the Gaming Control Board's shoes. The following lawsuits have been or will be filed:

- a petitionby Neighbors Allied for the Best Riverfront, Bella Vista United Civic Association, the Friends of Penn Treaty Park, among others. (This suit challenges the constitutionality of the decision by not taking into account any environmental impact.);

- a petition to appeal by theSociety Hill Civic Association, the Queen Village Neighbors Association, the Pennsport Civic Association, among others (challenging the process by which Foxwoods was selected);