Table Games

A state senator yesterday introduced a proposal to allow Pennsylvania's slot-machine parlors to add table games, as lawmakers begin to craft legislation that would also provide a hefty dose of new money for the state. "Given the current budget crisis that we face - the worst economic downturn in decades, and a shaky job climate - there is no better time for Pennsylvania to add table games to our casinos," Sen. Tommy Tomlinson (R., Bucks) told a committee in Harrisburg. "Table games in casinos could be a reliable, recurring revenue source to the state, and provide more jobs.

A Pennsylvania horsemen's group maintains that introduction of table games at the state's casinos would lower slots revenue, thus hurting the horse-racing industry. The decrease could be 8 percent to 13 percent, according to the Pennsylvania Equine Coalition, which presented its study to the House Gaming Oversight Committee in Harrisburg yesterday. "Current table-games legislation misguidedly sets different tax rates for slot machines and table games, creating the potential for lost state revenues and declines in funds for the equine industry," said Joe Santanna, president of the National Horsemen's Benevolent and Protective Association, a member of the equine coalition.

As it was about to mark the first anniversary of blackjack, poker, craps, and other table games, Pennsylvania closed out its fiscal year June 30 with $81.5 million generated by 10 state casinos, according to figures released Monday by the board that regulates the industry. The launch of table games began July 8, 2010, starting in the western part of the state and moving eastward. Parx in Bensalem, Harrah's in Chester, and Sands Casino Resort in Bethlehem rolled them out July 18, 2010.

Before boarding a business flight to Miami about noon Sunday, John McKenna of Northeast Philadelphia indulged in a few spins of the roulette wheel at Parx Casino. "It's more interactive. There's more of a human element," said McKenna, 36, referring to the newest attraction at Philadelphia's suburban casinos: dealer-staffed table games. As of early Sunday, Parx in Bensalem, Harrah's Chester Casino & Racetrack in Delaware County, and Sands Casino Resort in Bethlehem had joined the table-games locomotive - anticipated by many, including McKenna, to further erode Atlantic City's already flagging fortunes.

Leaders in the state General Assembly have struck a deal to legalize table games as Gov. Rendell threatened yesterday to lay off 995 employees unless that legislation is approved by Friday. The big question now: Can those legislative leaders convince their members in the state House and Senate to vote for the deal? Two sticking points in the legislative tussle between the House and Senate have been resolved, according to documents obtained yesterday by the Daily News . _ Local taxes - An estimated $3.6 million per year in "local share" taxes from table games at two planned casinos in Philadelphia would go to the city government instead of being distributed as grants by the state Department of Community and Economic Development (DCED)

After almost two months, the state House is scheduled to begin deliberation today on legislation to add table games at slot parlors and pump $200 million into the state budget. A final vote could take place by late tomorrow, said Bob Caton, spokesman for House Speaker Keith McCall (D., Carbon). Three points of contention remain in the legislation: the amount of taxes that would be levied on table-game revenue; the creation of additional gaming licenses for resorts; and the number of slots and table games permitted at casino resorts.

IN PASSING the table-games legislation that will allow poker, craps and roulette in the state's slots parlors, the Legislature has again confirmed that as far as it's concerned, we cities, counties, and communities of the commonwealth are mere colonies that toil to serve the Great Empire of Harrisburg. At least that's what it feels like in reviewing some of the key points of the legislation. _ It overrides the city's smoking ban. _ By granting a new 2012 deadline for the Foxwoods casino to open in the city, it overrides the state Gaming Control Board's own deadline of 2011.

The long-disputed table-games bill may have to wait until January. Legislation to allow poker, roulette, and other games at Pennsylvania casinos fell victim last night to one more round of disagreement between the Democratic-controlled state House and the Republican-controlled Senate. The Senate approved the bill, 27-22, after rewriting key sections in a move that House Democratic leaders immediately warned could shatter a fragile majority needed to send the measure to Gov. Rendell.

Keith Bewley stood in line at Delaware Park casino eagerly waiting to demonstrate that he had good vision, dexterity, and could count - essentials to being a table-games dealer. "I'm a victim of the recession," said the currently unemployed Bewley, 28, of West Grove in Chester County, who took his place at the table, rubbed his hands together, and began stacking a pile of chips by color, one of the tests. He proceeded to the next round, where he shuffled a deck of cards, had an interview, and took a drug test.

Inside the ornate rotunda of the Capitol yesterday, a student choir stood on white marble steps behind a massive Christmas tree, its voices filling the dome with verses of "Joy to the World. " Fourth graders posed for a class photo while a busload of senior citizens from Washington County made its way to the gallery of the House chamber. There, lawmakers were giving a long, sentimental farewell to Rep. Craig A. Dally (R., Northampton), who was to become a county judge. At 12:54 p.m., just before recessing for an hour, they had a last item of business: passing a resolution to make January "Learn a Snow Sport" month.

ATLANTIC CITY — It's showtime for Revel. Friday marked the $2.4 billion mega-casino's grand opening, with most of its amenities now operational. Revel opened its glass doors facing the ocean April 2 for an eight-week, "soft opening" preview to work out kinks and phase in half its restaurants, most of its hotel rooms, and a 32,000-square-foot spa. Friday's grand opening culminated that effort, just in time for one of the Shore resort's busiest weekends. Spanning 6.3 million square feet and standing 710 feet high, the 47-story Revel is now Atlantic City's tallest building and the second tallest in the state, topped only by 30 Hudson Street in Jersey City, which stands 781 feet tall.

In an effort to expand its reach as regional casino competition intensifies, Harrah's Chester Casino and Racetrack becomes Harrah's Philadelphia Saturday. The name change, part of a rebranding that includes nongambling offerings, has everything to do with the casino's reaching a broader audience, and nothing to do with distancing it from its host city, said Harrah's general manager Ron Baumann. "It's all about how you define the market. Philly is the market we are after," he said during a tour of the casino this week.

ATLANTIC CITY - As the sun rose over the Atlantic Ocean at 6:35 a.m., Revel management and staff raised their glasses to mark the official soft opening of this city's 12th casino, which many hope will turn the resort's fortunes around. "I'd like to propose a toast to all those folks who helped us," said Revel chief executive officer Kevin DeSanctis, standing on a stage with Acting Gov. Kim Guadagno in the facility's SkyGarden, with the Atlantic in the background. The ocean - which planners of the 6.3 million-square-foot casino resort worked hard to integrate into the design of the complex - is visible through Revel's glass facade from virtually every angle of the building.

Real estate magnate Ira Lubert grabbed a giant pair of scissors Saturday to signal that Valley Forge Casino Resort was officially open for business as Pennsylvania's 11th - and smallest - casino. "It's been great to work with this group," said the elusive Lubert, the casino's chairman who heads Lubert-Adler Partners, L.P., as he was flanked by other casino investors. "I think now it's finally time to cut the ribbon. " With that, William Ryan, chairman of the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board, presented Lubert a framed casino license amid applause and cheering just after 11 a.m. The $165 million casino in Upper Merion Township sits next to Valley Forge National Historical Park and two miles from King of Prussia Mall.

Opening: Preview, Monday-May 24; grand opening, May 25. Size: 6.3 million square feet, 47 stories on 20 acres. Cost: $2.4 billion. Guest rooms and suites: 1,898 (all rooms have ocean views). Smoking policy: 100 percent smoke-free. Spa: 31,000 square feet. Retail: 55,000 square feet. Theaters: Two, with capacity for 5,050 and 700 seats, respectively. Nightclubs: Two. Day clubs: One, featuring performance deck, cabanas and saltwater pool (42,000 square feet of space)

ATLANTIC CITY - This town isn't Las Vegas, but the $2.4 billion Revel Casino wants to take visitors there with A-list entertainment, posh rooms, and celebrity-chef restaurants in a luxurious setting where the champagne and water in 10 swimming pools are always flowing. The 20-acre resort - draped in silvery-blue reflective glass - literally curls to and fro like the ocean it embraces. Many see Revel as the lifeline for this down-on-its-luck gambling mecca in need of a revival.

Describing it as a casino "like no other in Southeastern Pennsylvania," the chief executive of Valley Forge Casino Resort gave a walking tour of the interior of the nearly completed gaming and entertainment venue Tuesday, about a month in advance of its March 31 official opening. Unveiled were the names and themes of the resort's four new sit-down restaurants, still under construction (Pacific Prime, Viviano, Valley Tavern, and Nosh Deli); its three micro-restaurants (Asianoodle, Italian Market, and American Grill)

Describing it as a casino "like no other in Southeastern Pennsylvania," the chief executive of Valley Forge Casino Resort gave a walking tour of the interior of the nearly completed gaming and entertainment venue Tuesday, about a month in advance of its March 31 official opening. Unveiled were the names and themes of the resort's four sit-down restaurants, still under construction (Pacific Prime, Viviano, Valley Taven, and Nosh Deli); its three micro-restaurants (Asianoodle, Italian Market, and American Grill)

BETHLEHEM, Pa. - Sands Casino Resort - which in January eclipsed Parx as the leader in table-game revenue for the fourth time since July 2010's start of blackjack and poker in the state - marked the grand opening Thursday of the latest arrivals to its new shopping mall. The Shoppes at Sands, a high-end outlet mall, is the first in a Pennsylvania casino. A half-dozen stores opened Nov. 1, followed by staggered openings over the last 3 1/2 months. Four more shops were added Thursday: Coach Factory, Chico's, Peeps & Co., and Corningware Corelle & More.

The Sands Casino Resort in Bethlehem - which in January eclipsed Parx as the state's leader in table-games revenue, according to just-released figures - opened much of its new shopping mall Thursday to eager shoppers. The high-end outlet mall, the first inside a Pennsylvania casino, opened a half-dozen stores Nov. 1, followed by staggered openings of other stores, including Guess and Coach, over the last four months. Twenty-four of 31 stores are now open. A Wednesday night grand opening for the Shoppes at Sands included a fashion show featuring models in clothes sold in the stores there.