Monday, May 22, 2006
Latest Gaming Opinions Much Ado About Nothing
The City Planning Department likes the Station Square gambling proposal more than the plans to put a casino in the Hill District or on the North Shore, but its preference carries no weight.
The community of Penn Hills supports the Isle of Capri plan, and Council even passed a resolution supporting it, even though the casino will not be located in Penn Hills.
Sound absurd? To say the least. In the case of the City planning department, state law required the department to rate proposals on factors related to transportation and interpret the findings for City Council and the Mayor, even though “the intent of the analysis is not to make a recommendation”, which, if it did, would not matter anyway. As we have known since the gaming law was passed almost two years ago, the seven-member Gaming Board will make the final decision. That did not dissuade members of Council from cross-examining the planning director on the report’s findings. Hopefully, City funds were not expended to pay for the study.
In the case of Penn Hills, it seems as though a former elected official is making rounds in support of the Isle of Capri/Penguins plan. It is not clear if a representative for the Harrah’s/Station Square plan or the Majestic North Shore is doing the same. In other words, the Council may have heard from one group and decided to endorse it without hearing from the others. The Council’s action is almost as useless as one from Pittsburgh City Council weighing in on foreign policy or U.S. Supreme Court nominees.
http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/06138/690970-56.stm
http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/06142/692205-100.stm
The community of Penn Hills supports the Isle of Capri plan, and Council even passed a resolution supporting it, even though the casino will not be located in Penn Hills.
Sound absurd? To say the least. In the case of the City planning department, state law required the department to rate proposals on factors related to transportation and interpret the findings for City Council and the Mayor, even though “the intent of the analysis is not to make a recommendation”, which, if it did, would not matter anyway. As we have known since the gaming law was passed almost two years ago, the seven-member Gaming Board will make the final decision. That did not dissuade members of Council from cross-examining the planning director on the report’s findings. Hopefully, City funds were not expended to pay for the study.
In the case of Penn Hills, it seems as though a former elected official is making rounds in support of the Isle of Capri/Penguins plan. It is not clear if a representative for the Harrah’s/Station Square plan or the Majestic North Shore is doing the same. In other words, the Council may have heard from one group and decided to endorse it without hearing from the others. The Council’s action is almost as useless as one from Pittsburgh City Council weighing in on foreign policy or U.S. Supreme Court nominees.
http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/06138/690970-56.stm
http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/06142/692205-100.stm
