Right. Maybe since the city has no right to regulate the casinos, maybe the restaurants in the casino can now ignore the city's health code as well. I always hated those stupid hair net things anyway. Bugs are good for you.

Stripping away local authority over local issues (like zoning) is bad law and bad policy whether you want the casinos or not.

__________________
A song that says it all.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BqITJFGyq4s

This has always been the major issue. Pro casino people are cheering now, but wait till Harrisburg forces something on them that they don't want.

__________________

What if Harrisburg decides to build a giant public housing project in NE Philly. How will you feel about that?

See you at the projects!

__________________

Come on. The legislation was initiated by a governor who's a former Philadelphia mayor with the support of at least two high ranking Philadelphia legislators, Vince Fumo and Dwight Evans. One of the purposes of the casinos is to dramatically reduce wage taxes in Philadelphia and thereby stimulate more economic activity. As for the sites themselves, this is a densely developed city with small lot sizes. If you eliminate most of the Northeast (which the legislation required), you simply can't find that many sites that are far removed from residential areas. Accept it.

If we (Philadelphia voters) want them at Y, Y or Z location, it should be up to the local zoning process or better yet City Council's choice where they go. An beyond that to rob the City of what little control it has to negotiate solutions to the traffic problems is a travesty.

Casinos are big ugly malls that cater mostly to old people, to steal their disposable income to pay for expanding the convention center (which gets over 2/3 of the tax revenue). No better, no worse. We have already seen the bulk tax relief we are going to see from this and its well . . . underwhelming. Stripping local zoning authority simply means the city has nothing to negotiate better traffic management out of the casinos with from here on out.

__________________
A song that says it all.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BqITJFGyq4s

Don't get me wrong.

Philadelphia still has some tricks it could use. If I was mayor and I was 100% against the casinos, I would absolutely consider using them.

Here's some things that City Council can do to derail SugarHouse (causing more lawsuits and more delay):

- The fine for illegally parking on Delaware Avenue can be set to One-Thousand Dollars.

- They can refuse to grant service utility permits to extend electricity, gas and sewer connections to the property.

- They can refuse to grant operating permits for any restaurants in the casino.

- They can setup a police blockade on Delaware Avenue to squeeze traffic and purposely increase congestion around the casino to upset patronage.

- The City of Philadelphia can reconfigure the streets around the casino so that it sits in an isolated bubble by installing concrete barriers on all the East-West streets between Tasker and Girard... so the only access to the casino is via the I-95 ramps.

- The City can order police to setup speed traps along Delaware Avenue aimed at keeping speed down, double traffic fines on Delaware Avenue and also reduce the speed limit to 20MPH along the entire length, aimed at further discouraging patronage [but also killing Dave and Busters, Target, IKEA and Wal-Mart, etc]




The traffic items on this list probably could be done without a valid question coming to the Supreme Court over whether the City is trying to defy the gaming ordinance, and it could effectively kill off the profitability of the casino so that SugarHouse would simply decide to leave.

__________________
WHYY pays their CEO $750,000 a year. So WHYY should I renew my membership? Seems they have no problems finding money and spending it unwisely.


And this is why you should donate to PACCA, not PETA:

In September, PETA made headlines in Vermont and across the nation for asking Ben & Jerry's ice cream to use human breast milk in their ice cream, instead of cow milk

Yeah philadelphia should just "accept it" just like the crime and trash and everything else. There are numerous potential sites the state should not be anble to railroad over the city Govt and communities.

I am not especially opposed to the casinos I dont think they will be a disaster I also dont think they will be particularly great... just big ugly traffic generators. They certainly dont have to be on the river though.

I asked this question elswhere... if the casinos get what they want and the city has no pull what happens to the community benefits that were suupposed to be given to Fishtown and NoLibs? Does the casino have any incentive to do anything for these communities. I think many of the string pro-casno folks will be sorely dissapointed when the casinos get built and they dont get sh*t except traffic

Philadelphia voters need to think about who they send to Harrisburg to represent them. State elections matter and voters will get a chance to hold their state reps accountable next year. Here's hoping they do.

__________________
A song that says it all.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BqITJFGyq4s

I think if the City wants to get its hands on the casino money before the state does, it should immediately drop the speed limits and put in emergency traffic-calming measures on the 95 ramps and on Del Avenue, in addition to the $1,000 illegal parking fine.


Who wants to go to the casino when you have to go through speed traps, speed humps and overzealous traffic and parking enforcement just to get there.

The idiots drivers alone in New Jersey going to SugarHouse would generate 1/2 a million dollars a week in just the traffic fines.

And the state gets NONE of that money. It goes to the City's general fund.

The PPD should also check regularly check SugarHouse's parking or sit at the entrance and look for expired brake tags and implement LiveSTOP right there. City collects even more dough on the impound fees.

__________________
WHYY pays their CEO $750,000 a year. So WHYY should I renew my membership? Seems they have no problems finding money and spending it unwisely.


And this is why you should donate to PACCA, not PETA:

In September, PETA made headlines in Vermont and across the nation for asking Ben & Jerry's ice cream to use human breast milk in their ice cream, instead of cow milk

Maybe with SugarHouse, Philadelphians will have learned a thing or two about the politicians they voted in office.

After all, Philadelphians are ultimately responsible for bringing gaming to ALL of Pennsylvania.


The people in the First Senate District are to blame for all the casinos in the state, because we put Fumo in power.

I hope everyone learned their lesson. So, wake up and smell the slots and the car exhaust from all the traffic!

__________________
WHYY pays their CEO $750,000 a year. So WHYY should I renew my membership? Seems they have no problems finding money and spending it unwisely.


And this is why you should donate to PACCA, not PETA:

In September, PETA made headlines in Vermont and across the nation for asking Ben & Jerry's ice cream to use human breast milk in their ice cream, instead of cow milk