That $67 million note Harrah’s Entertainment holds on the site of the Foxwoods Wynn Resorts [your casino here] site in Philadelphia is turning out to be mighty valuable. The gambling giant is looking to roll that I.O.U. into an equity position, which also breathes new life into the comatose Ed Snider-led consortium. As for Pennsylvania‘s political establishment, Harrah’s CEO Gary Loveman has it in a box of its own construction.
When Harrah’s was part of one of three groups bidding for the Pittsburgh slot parlor concession, a primary argument against it was, ‘Why give Harrah’s access to both of Pennsylvania’s largest markets?’ Even though the Forest City/Harrah’s proposal was the most persuasive of the trio submitted, the gig went to Don Barden — and we all know how that ended.
When Barden ran out of money, the Pittsburgh contract was expeditiously transferred to developer Neil Bluhm, even though he was already had a Philadelphia casino, SugarHouse. So much for intellectual consistency … unless you count taking a consistently indulgent attitude toward big Democratic Party donors like Barden and Bluhm.
Now, instead of Harrah’s having one casino in the Philly area (Harrah’s Chester) and a third of one in Pittsburgh, Keystone State regulators will have to deal with concentration-of-ownership issues raised by Harrah’s having 1.3 of the four casinos in the greater Philadelphia metropolitan area. I can hear competitors Parx Casino and SugarHouse squawking already, methinks.
That also raises the specter of Donald Trump and his failed bid for one of the two Philadelphia contracts. Financial problems aside, the Trumpster was nixed out of fear he would want to protect his Atlantic City interests by building a small, noncompetitive property in the City of Brotherly Love. But if Trump’s three New Jersey casinos were too great a conflict, what then do Philly city fathers say about Harrah’s four Atlantic City properties — plus one in Chester?
The most intellectually consistent course would be to pull the plug on Snider & Co. and possibly rebid the project elsewhere (Johnstown has been mentioned). However, the looming presence of Harrah’s — to say nothing of its player database and managerial talent (it’s still the best “farm system” for casino executives) — turns Wynnwoods into a highly viable project. With jobs and hundreds of millions in potential investment at stake, it should prove very difficult for Pennsylvanians to say “no.”
Wynnvote 2012: This just in — Steve Wynn has a White House candidate for 2012 and it’s Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour. Just FYI.
