Council to mull gambling zoning at Strawbridge's

The creation of a slots parlor in the old Strawbridge's department store will begin moving forward today with the introduction of a bill in City Council to permit gambling in the building.

Councilman Frank DiCicco, whose district includes the site, at Eighth and Market Streets, said he would sponsor legislation for special zoning for gambling inside the vacant store.

At the same time, he will ask Council to send the project's development plan straight to the city's planning commission. Council will hold a public hearing on the bill May 7, but it could take until June for the commission to review the plan.

The last time the Foxwoods investor group went before Council for approval, in 2007, members had to sign off on the entire casino plan before it went to the commission.

Andy Altman, deputy mayor for planning and economic development, said that this time around, the planning commission hoped to play "a stronger role" in steering the development.

At a City Hall news conference yesterday, officials for the city and Foxwoods laid out the process in the months ahead for building the casino.

Mayor Nutter said he hoped the project would "move along as quickly as possible" and "jump-start" a revitalization of the Market Street East shopping corridor.

A slots parlor at the Strawbridge's site could be operating by early next year, Foxwoods representative Brian Ford said. The first phase will cost the investor group about $300 million. Financing has been secured, he said, but he did not elaborate.

In 2006, the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board chose Foxwoods as one of two casino operators for Philadelphia.

Originally, the investor group had permission to build on the Delaware River on South Columbus Boulevard. But facing intense opposition from Nutter, who did not want big-box development along the water, the partners opted to move to Center City.

At first, the group considered a casino in the Gallery at Market East, but shifted attention to the Strawbridge's building.

Roseanne Loesch, incoming president of the Society Hill Civic Association, said Center City neighborhoods remained strongly opposed to a downtown casino. She said the mayor had emphasized the jobs and revenue from casinos, but had ignored the costs, such as spending for police and the societal impact of gambling addiction.

"This is not a net benefit to our city," Loesch said.

Rob Stuart, president of the Logan Square Neighborhood Association, said his members voted Tuesday night to oppose a casino at Strawbridge's.

"The neighborhoods have long had the position that the casino-siting process has been more driven by the investors than good community planning," Stuart said.

In the plan for the Strawbridge's building, the ground floor would be occupied by restaurants, with slot machines on other levels.

"This will activate a dormant city block," said DiCicco, calling the location better than the Gallery or the waterfront.

The planning commission, he said, will review the project much as it did two years ago, with studies on traffic, parking, and signage.

"I understand this is an unpopular decision," he said.

DiCicco added that Foxwoods had retained the right to build on the waterfront. If the original plan is revived, he said, it will be "devastating for the river and the city."

If his endorsement of the Strawbridge's site costs him reelection in two years, DiCicco said, "so be it."