Trump Sues Gaming Control Board For Rejecting Casino Bid
Donald Trump sued the state Gaming Control Board in federal court this afternoon for rejecting in 2006 his bid to build a casino on the site of the former Budd Co. plant in Nicetown with a group of investors. Trump's lawsuit, filed in the state's Middle District in Harrisburg, accuses the board's members of violating the U.S. Constitutions protection on interstate commerce.
Trump Sues Gaming Control Board For Rejecting Casino Bid
Chris Brennan
The board, while considering five applicants for two casino licenses in Philadelphia, weighed whether casino operators with properties in Atlantic City would attempt to recruit customers here and then divert them there. Pennsylvania’s casinos are taxed at a rate of 54 percent. Atlantic City’s casinos are taxed at a rate of 9.25 percent. “The board has considered the fact of competing Atlantic City properties as a negative factor for licensure in Philadelphia,” the Gaming Control Board wrote on Feb. 1, 2007 about its Dec. 20, 2006 decision. The board singled out Trump, who has three Atlantic City casinos, noting his company had recently emerged from bankruptcy and could “lure patrons… to assist in the rebuilding and revitalization of properties there.”
Trump is asking a federal judge to overturn the state-awarded gaming licenses for SugarHouse in Fishtown and Foxwoods, which was approved for a South Philly site but is now considering relocation to the Gallery at 11th and Market streets. The lawsuit says Trump and his investors spent more than $10 million in planning for their Nicetown location and were rewarded with a “discriminatory criteria” from the board that wasn’t part of the 2004 state casino law. That, the lawsuit continues, gave an unfair advantage to applicants with no business in Atlantic City.
Trump’s action today is the first of three likely moves. The lawsuit is expected to be followed by a request to the Gaming Control Board for a hearing to revoke the casino license for Foxwoods, which is considering a move after two years of battles with community groups and the city about its South Philly site. Trump is also likely to file a petition to intervene if Foxwoods files a request to move with the board, which would have to hold a hearing to consider and vote on it. Trump's lawsuit seeks to stop the Gaming Control Board from taking further action on the current local casino licenses until the issue is resolved. That could eventually give Trump another chance at participating in a local casino.
Trump three months ago ripped Rendell for “outrageous” behavior for helping to engineer the potential Foxwoods move. A former friend of Rendell’s, Trump said he didn’t expect to ever seek casino business in Pennsylvania again. “Pennsylvania is a little too political of a state for me,” Trump said then. “It sounds like you have to be a friend of the governor to get a casino.”
* Brian Tierney, now CEO of Philadelphia Media Holdings, which owns the Daily News and Philly.com, was one of the local investors in Trump’s Philadelphia application, under the name Keystone Redevelopment Partners LLC.
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This just feeds my long-standing fear that all this nationwide casino development was too much too fast, and that, in particular, Pennsylvania will eventually end up with wasted real estate development.— bensalemite- Comment removed.
- You go Donald! Sue the pants off them!— Stanley Levin
- trump never pays his bills on time...always 90+ paying casino vendors. he made many a small business go bankrupt with slow or no paying of bills...many of his properties have deferred maintenance..not saying he should not come here or does not have a valid argument - just need to view all sides of the story— gogglespaisano
- I think CleanupPhilly has the right idea. An extra casino license would solve the problem easily. The casino in Nicetown would draw from a different demographic and generate revenue anyway.— cboath
- Trumps real estate holdings are losing money and he is just trying to find ways to cover his losses. He should stay in New York.— Pat c
- Just what we need, another building that begins with the word "Trump". Why doesn't he open a casino in NY City......oh, that's right too political. Crawl back under the rock you came from Donald.— Voytas
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- He can't make money with his casinos, so he has to sue and seek taxpayer money. Classy!— Mutt
- I always thought: 1) Trumps location should have been one of the one's selected. They did everything the community asked them to do and had little opposition. It also served a completely different side of the city. 2) The minute "Fast Eddy" anounced he was going to get involved in selecting a possible new location for Foxwoods, it was going to be a huge mess. You can not award a license based on a site, then move the site. Although I feel The gallery is a far better location, it is not fair. 3) The fact the Trump does own 3 properties in AC is a huge plus. They already have the clientèle and the name. Let them ship people back and forth to AC. I would have a bus depart from Nicetown to AC twice a day. $20 for the ride and you get a Free trip to the buffet when you get back to Philly. If they are going to go to AC, they are going to go. AC still has the table games we don't. Let them see the Nicetown location in the process. 4) The Phillies are the team to beat in 09'.— usonis
- Trump runs unimpressive casino operations and has run Atlantic City casino's into the ground for poor financing. He is right in his statements of rights but he is not a good pick. Philly already has no class and he would make it worst...Hey send in the apprentices to do a better job!— John Jr.
- Yeah...let's add a third casino that NO ONE can agree on...super idea. Go Donny!— rbpeeple
- Mr. Trump's intended casino location on the former Budd Company site was only a few blocks from elementary schools, high schools and university campuses. Mr. Trump should tell the advisers who recommended this location to him "you're fired".— Metropolitan
- There's more support than you realize for Foxwoods in South Philly. All of this is REALLY a game. Once all hands are greased, the Casinos (and anyone else with cash) can play where they want to play. Does ANYONE seriously believe Michael Nutter or City Council CARE about the people of Philadelphia? How much "care" did they show to the folks in Chinatown who do not want a casino there. It's worth it for The Donald to try and hold up the Casinos here. Peanuts to him and his lawyers, while they try ti keep their AC Casino's up and running. Would love to know who just MIGHT be funding the Anti-Casino movement in Philly, Could it be The D........— PhillyS1980
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David Gambacorta spent a small eternity writing about cops, drug dealers and serial killers. Now he’s writing about power and politics – which sometimes reminds him of the old crime beat. He joined the Daily News in 2005. And yes, he knows you’re not quite sure how to pronounce his last name. E-mail tips to gambacd@phillynews.com
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Jan Ransom, a native New Yorker, joined the Daily News in 2010 after graduating from Howard University. She has since written about the difficulty of filing police complaints, tax deadbeats and life after violent home invasions. She joined the Daily News City Hall Bureau in 2011 and has plunged headfirst into reporting on administration budget battles and City Council shenanigans. E-mail tips to ransomj@phillynews.com
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Sean Collins Walsh is from Bucks County and went to Northwestern University. He joined the Daily News copy desk in 2012 and now covers the Nutter administration. Before that, he interned at papers including The New York Times, The Dallas Morning News and The Seattle Times. E-mail tips to walshSE@phillynews.com
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