The first auction is scheduled on Jan 10

Pennsylvania set to double its casinos in 2018

Although the new casino law allows Pennsylvania's municipalities to opt out of hosting one of the new gambling halls, that decision may later be reversed by the local government officials.
2017-12-18
Reading time 1:28 min
Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board will award licenses for 10 new casinos, what is expected to raise USD 100 M in licensing revenue for the State.

Ten mini-casino licenses are scheduled to be auctioned off on Jan 10 by the state’s control board. State lawmakers and Gov. Tom Wolf created the new Category 4 casino licenses as part of a revenue package signed into law Oct. 30 to help fill a state budget deficit.

This new category of casino is in addition to Category 1 (race track), Category 2 (stand-alone) and Category 3 (resort). Bidding for each Category 4 license starts at USD 7.5 M, plus USD 2.5 M to have table games, for a casino limited to 750 slots and 30 table games. By comparison, the state's larger casinos can operate up to 5,000 slot machines.

Race track and stand-alone casinos -- the latter group includes Sands Casino Resort Bethlehem and Mount Airy Casino in Monroe County -- get first crack at the new licenses. Following the first auction next month, nine more auctions are set for the remaining licenses every two weeks through May 16.

If any Category 4 licenses remain, subsequent rounds of bidding would be open to resort casinos, too.

The law creating the new casinos includes language to protect Mount Airy from new competition for coveted New York visitors, philly.com reports.

Generally, the mini-casinos must be at least 25 miles from any of the state's 12 existing casinos. But the law also prohibits a mini-casino "in a sixth-class county which is contiguous to a county that hosts a Category 2 licensed facility." That means no new Category 4 casino in Wayne, Pike or Carbon counties, according to the report.

A Mount Airy spokesman declined to comment on whether the casino would seek a Category 4 license. The same goes for the Sands Bethlehem parent, Las Vegas Sands Corp.

"Las Vegas Sands remains bullish on Pennsylvania and its gaming market, but we do not have a comment at this time regarding any future opportunities we may have there," spokesman Ron Reese said in an email.

The new casino law allows municipalities to opt out of hosting one of the new gambling halls, though that decision may later be reversed by the local government officials.

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