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to promote civic engagement in the Philadelphia region.Gov/Foxwoods meeting won’t change a thing
Thursday, August 21st, 2008 at 9:53 am - by Matt Campbell. Filed under: Casinos.
Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell is scheduled to meet today with representatives of Foxwoods Casino, which plans to build a casino in South Philadelphia along the riverfront. The point of the meeting is to discuss whether Foxwoods would consider a new location where it might face less community opposition. But casino spokeswoman Maureen Garritty has continuosly stated that Foxwoods has no intention of giving up the spot, which was approved by the state Gaming Control Commission. So the big question is what’s going to come out of this meeting today? The only thing standing in the way of Foxwoods from building its site is strong community opposition from groups like Casino-Free Philadelphia that have succeeded in getting local politicians to drag their feet on the approval of permits and zoning. Unless Rendell has a magic wand, today’s meeting is just a political show that is wasting everyone’s time. It’s unfair to Foxwoods, that has been plodding through the bureaucratic approval process, and it gives South Philadelphia residents a false impression that Foxwoods might move. I’m curious what It’s Our City readers think. Is this meeting, and presumably a similar one in the works with Sugarhouse, just a political show?
August 21st, 2008 at 10:08 am
This battle keeps going back and forth. I’m not sure why people are fighting this project? Philadelphia would benefit and hurt from the casinos (like any other project). However, do people believe Philly is going to turn into Vegas??? Def not.
August 21st, 2008 at 10:23 am
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August 21st, 2008 at 4:12 pm
This counts as reporting? Of course casinos are bad. And the fact that Guv had this meeting is important — and clearly it makes a difference. See the outcome?
August 21st, 2008 at 5:32 pm
Jacob. The casinos don’t have to move. They don’t want to. The Gov himself said a week before this meeting that we shouldn’t expect much. So how is this important? Sure it has the State’s Governor in a room with a major casino operator but once it was clear Foxwoods isn’t moving they might of moved on to talking about how tall the trees could be next to the parking garage. If people are mad about the casinos, they should be mad at the folks who met over the july 4th weekend in 2004 and legalized gambling without a public vote. Here’s marty moss-coane’s interview with
MATTHEW TEAGUE about it.
http://www.whyy.org/rameta/RT/2007/RT20070604_20.ram