Casino

ATLANTIC CITY - Jeffrey Barton moved to the Shore from Redondo Beach, Calif., a year ago to cash in on an unprecedented building boom here. "I'm here for one thing," said Barton, 44, who makes $31.97 an hour as a tile finisher. "The work. " There are plans over the next four years for $20 billion worth of casino, hotel, restaurant and retail construction and renovation projects, many of which began in 2003. And in a slowing national economy, all that development is attracting construction workers from around the country.

Law enforcement authorities are on special alert in and around Atlantic City after receiving a warning from federal authorities that two men are believed to be planning a terrorist attack on a casino there. Reports in this morning's Newark Star-Ledger and Atlantic City Press say the FBI advised authorities that the possible terrorists are men from an unspecified Arab country who have been dispatched to launch a terrorist assault on an unspecified target in Atlantic City. The threatened action is reportedly in retaliation for the U.S. bombing on April 14, 1986, of Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi's headquarters in which an infant daughter of Gadhafi allegedly died.

As an attorney in the law firm which represents several construction labor unions mentioned in your recent series of articles on Atlantic City, I believe the articles were most unfair in their portrayal of the unions' practices and relationships with casino hotels. The article on Thursday, Feb. 27, wrongfully criticizes many Atlantic City construction unions for employing legitimate means under the Taft-Hartley Act to organize as many employees as possible. It sided with a hotel-casino which resisted unionization.

In the Disney movie Freaky Friday, the mother of a typically rebellious teenager drives her to school - where the girl promptly exits the family car without waiting to hear her mother's plea that she "make good choices!" Those are wise words, as well, for Pennsylvania gambling regulators who, this week, are set to pick winners in the fierce competition for lucrative slots casino licenses. State Gaming Control Board members should be more likely to heed sound advice than high school teens.

All hands on deck. That's the rallying cry for the folks working at Dover Downs Hotel and Casino as they prepare for the unknown this weekend, with a crowd in excess of 100,000 expected to attend Sunday's AAA 400 Sprint Cup Series race next door at Dover International Speedway. Earlier this month, legalized sports betting - in the form of parlay wagers on multiple NFL games - returned to Delaware for the first time since 1976. Just how many NASCAR fans will saunter over to the casino's new $5 million sports book is anyone's guess.

COLUMNIST Elmer Smith wrote, "Either way, this business could be tied up long enough for the city to earn a new distinction: It may take longer to pull a slot machine lever in this city than anywhere else on earth. " But development this large, this far-reaching requires judicious implementation. The so-called delays by civic groups over the last two and a half years have allowed - if not forced - what absolutely should have been legislated in the first place: due process, which is precious for democracy.

Fedelle "Dale" Scutti was having trouble with his sinuses. Salt air always seemed to help, so he packed his bags and headed for Atlantic City from his home in Rochester, N.Y. It was January, not a great time to be at the shore. Scutti, 54, a self- made millionaire but no gambler, checked into the Showboat Hotel, planning to do nothing more than relax and go for walks on the Boardwalk. But by the time Scutti checked out more than a week later, he was ready to initiate a battle with the man who is arguably the most powerful operator in Atlantic City, Donald Trump.

Philadelphia's recent casino hearings brought back memories of those giddy days in 2006 when gambling was new to Pennsylvania and no amenity was too extravagant for our city's gaming halls. Once again, the applicants vied to seduce us with all kinds of extras. A 320-room resort hotel! Spas! Bike paths! Fishing piers! Skating rink! Luxury shops! A starchitect design! For most people, the promises made during the first licensing round have been lost in the mists of time. But because I am a magpie of the filing cabinet, I only had to dust off SugarHouse's 2006 proposal to see how it checked out against the 2013 reality.

The half-dozen applicants for Philadelphia's second casino license touted the merits of their proposals Tuesday before the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board. Flashy videos with images of the city's skyline, its iconic attractions, and its smiling residents were standard fare. The first four groups - led by local developer Ken Goldenberg, South Philadelphia businessman Joseph Procacci, a partnership between regional casino operators Greenwood Gaming and Entertainment Inc. and Cordish Cos., and gaming giant Penn National Gaming Inc. - gave it their best shot.

The developer Bart Blatstein hand-delivered to the state's Gaming Control Board on Tuesday his application for a casino license for a planned project at Broad and Callowhill Streets. The deadline for applications is 5 p.m. Thursday. Blatstein's Provence project would include a casino, hotel, and rooftop shopping and dining. - Jennifer Lin