PA Gaming Control Board Adds May 22 Hearing On Lehigh Valley Proposals

HARRISBURG: Because of overwhelming public interest in gaming facilities proposed for the Lehigh Valley, the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board has added a third day of hearings on the applications, Anne LaCour Neeb, Executive Director of the PGCB, said today.

The new date, Monday May 22, 2006, is in addition to the previously announced April 28, 2006, and May 23, 2006, hearings on the three proposals.

“Public input is a critical part of the licensing process, and the Gaming Control Board is committed to ensuring that people across Pennsylvania have an opportunity for their views to become part of the permanent record the Board considers when deciding which proposals are approved for licensure,” Neeb said.

“The Board received timely registrations from almost 1,100 individuals, community organizations, local governments and applicants statewide, including 271 for the Lehigh Valley proposals,” she added. “To ensure an opportunity to be heard, we have added a third day of hearings in the region.”

The May 22 hearings, like the April 28 and May 23 hearings, will take place at the Crowne Plaza Allentown Hotel, 904 Hamilton St., in Allentown.

The newly scheduled hearings will begin promptly at 8:30 a.m. with a video of the presentations that the applicants made at the April 28 hearings, so those who could not attend the initial hearing may view the presentation before giving their testimony, Neeb said.

Registrants are being notified by mail of the additional date and the hearing at which they will have an opportunity to testify, Neeb said. Those who cannot attend this hearing may submit written comments for inclusion in the evidentiary record that will have a weight equal to testimony presented in person. A copy of the comment-submission form and instructions for filing it are included in the mail notification to registrants.

People who submit written comments will have until June 2, 2006, to send their comments by mail to the Gaming Control Board for inclusion in the evidentiary record, Neeb said.

The mailing address for written comments is:
Office of the Clerk
Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board
PO Box 69060
Harrisburg, PA 17106

All other rules and procedures governing the hearings remain as originally announced, Neeb said. For further details, visit the Gaming Control Board’s Web site, www.pgcb.state.pa.us, and click on the “Public-Input Hearings” button.

Separately, the Board will add a fourth day of hearings on Philadelphia-area proposals.
Overall, there are now 18 days of hearings scheduled for nine locations across the Commonwealth, Neeb added. The Gaming Control Board is considering 22 applications for the 14 gaming licenses authorized by Act 71 of 2004.

The full schedule of hearings and applications to be considered at each are as follows, with new dates noted.

• April 5, Gettysburg, Gettysburg College (Crossroads Gaming)
• April 6, Harrisburg, State Museum (Mountainview) (NOTE: This hearing begins at 1 p.m.)
• April 7, Harrisburg, State Museum (Crossroads Gaming)
• April 10-12, Philadelphia, Drexel University (HSP Gaming; Philadelphia Entertainment & Development; PNK (Pa), LLC; Riverwalk Casino; Keystone Redevelopment
• April 18-19, Pittsburgh, Omni William Penn Hotel (IOC Pittsburgh Inc.; PITG Gaming; Station Square Gaming)
• April 21, Erie, Gannon University (Presque Isle Downs)
• April 27, Poconos, Split Rock Resort (Downs Racing; Mount Airy; Pocono Manor)
• April 28, Lehigh Valley, Crowne Plaza Allentown Hotel (Sands Bethworks Gaming; Boyd PA Partners; Tropicana PA, LLC)
• May 2, Uniontown, Holiday Inn Holidome & Conference Center (Woodlands Fayette)
• May 3, Somerset, Hidden Valley Resort (Seven Springs Farm)
• May 10, Pittsburgh, Omni William Penn Hotel (Washington Trotting)
• May 17, Gettysburg, Gettysburg College (Crossroads Gaming)
• NEW DATE May 22, Lehigh Valley, Crowne Plaza Allentown Hotel (Sands Bethworks Gaming; Boyd PA Partners; Tropicana PA, LLC)
• May 23, Lehigh Valley, Crowne Plaza Allentown Hotel (Sands Bethworks Gaming; Boyd PA Partners; Tropicana PA, LLC)
• NEW DATE TBA – Philadelphia (Chester Downs; Greenwood Gaming)

By law, the Gaming Control Board is responsible for issuing gaming licenses to seven horse-racing tracks; five standalone facilities, including two in Philadelphia and one in Pittsburgh; and two existing resorts.