SugarHouse Casino has been trying to get a shovel in the ground on its North Delaware Avenue site in Fishtown/Northern Liberties since December 2006, when it was awarded one of two licenses to run a slots parlor in Philadelphia. That process has bogged down amid appeals and City Council, and most recently with historical studies and a Supreme Court challenge to how it acquired state-owned property rights over the Delaware River.
On Friday the Army Corps of Engineers gave SugarHouse permission to start digging some test-pilings -- essentially holes to determine the soil composition or removing debris leftover from the demolition of the old Jack Frost Sugar Refinery -- on land that is not subject to archaeological studies or part of the disputed riverbed land. The Army Corps said all work should be done with an archaeologist inspecting so that it doesn't disturb the areas being studied for historical artifacts.
SugarHouse will not be able to go forward with its planned construction until the Corps is satisfied that any historical remains are preserved, and until the State Supreme Court decides whether the city properly permitted SugarHouse to build out over the Delaware River, even though that riverbed belongs to the state.
Comment removed.
Yiiiipppppeeeeee! Finally!!!!!— FishtownMom- Yippee Fishtown mom...read the article...it's not the start of construction. You'll still have to wait to watch your neighborhood get destroyed. Hold on to your low expectations....— rbpeeple
- Hey FishtownMom....we'll be celebrating soon enough...real jobs for residents who REALLY work!! (sorry...we don't need any more art studios, coffee houses or thrift stores!!!) ...talk about low expectations (??)— workingmom
- Great news for the Fishtown community that I have lived in for the last 25 years. In a walk around the neighborhood last evening, several people expressed great relief that some construction is finally starting on the SugarHouse site.— equalityman
- As usual "FACT" members are ready to spout their pro-SugarHouse propaganda with distorted "facts". They're celebrating "essentially holes to determine the soil composition or removing debris leftover from the demolition of the old Jack Frost Sugar Refinery". For "FACT" members holes in the ground mean jobs. LOL!!!— jlemm
- I am glad to see progress is finally being made, however small that may be. Sugarhouse will definitely be an asset to the community and to the city.— mrb
- The Penn-Praxis vision for the Delaware waterfront is just THAT. Only a vision that will take at least 30 years to complete. I will cause a traffic nightmare on the Columbus Blvd/Delaware Ave. corridor and most likely I-95 will be affected also. For a long time. The city doesn't have the money to waste on this foolishness. And if it IS completed the only people who it will employ are a few groundskeepers. Let's give these casino developers a chance seeing as they are the lesser of two evils.— Rambeaux
- I am happy to see this project moving forward. It has been held up way too long. For those who protest, I guess they enjoy looking at all the waste lands up and down the Delaware river. Let's not be afraid of change for if we are standing still we are not moving. This casino project will create many jobs, increased home values and opportunities for growth in the area. We should look at this new development in our city as a stepping stone that will help us to continue to rebuild a city that has so desperately needed it. Thank You Sugarhouse!— MarieRuch
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