Resort casino license still up for grabs in Pa.

Pennsylvania’s Gaming Control Board still hasn’t decided where to place a new resort casino.

It will take more than a majority vote for the Board to award a license to one of four casino applicants.

All four legislative appointees and at least one of the three board members picked by the governor will need to approve the winner.

After a hearing last week, Board Chair Greg Fajt said the panel isn’t there yet.

“We have not yet reached a qualified majority on that. And when we do we’ll tee it up for a decision and make a decision,” he said.

Testifying at the same hearing, gaming analyst Steve Rittvo of the Innovation Group told lawmakers Pennsylvania’s eastern and western casino markets are saturated, and another category-two gaming parlor would likely hurt revenue at existing casinos.

But in a follow-up interview, he said another smaller resort casino likely wouldn’t take traffic away from already-operating establishments. “I mean ,that’s why you put them in resort facilities. They were capturing tourists that were coming there,” he said. “The gaming revenues that they would generate probably for the most part are not coming from existing casinos.”

Sites in Gettysburg, Fayette County, the Poconos and the Harrisburg area are vying for the license, which the Gaming Control Board isn’t required to award at all.