As the casino race drags on, reactions to Wynn Philly's shocking drop-out have ranged from catty to classy. As usual, PHL Local Gaming (the team behind Casino Revolution) is making the most of the brief spotlight to offer a few choice words, but other casino applicants have opinions too.
PHL Local Gaming took the opportunity to reiterate their plans to build an entertainment megacomplex spanning acres of South Philly land formerly used as a food distribution center. Paradoxically, they also criticized the huge cost of the Wynn Project: ""Big, bloated, very expensive projects are not going to fly in this market." This, from the casino operators who plan to build a $428M casino and a $278M entertainment complex seems a bit unselfaware. They also pointed out that they'd be the only casino with the capacity to eventually have 5,000 slot machines, perhaps not having heard hand wringing over "slot boxes" being thrown around throughout the casino process.
Market8, taking a more subtle approach, thanked Wynn for "set[ting] the bar very high" and noted slyly that they "agree with Wynn's assessment when he first evaluated sites in Philadelphia — Market Street is the only viable location for a casino license."
The team behind the Hollywood Casino obliviously responded that they had been a front runner all along.
Bart Blatstein, the man behind The Provence, a proposed French resort casino on North Broad, said that he "never felt that he [Steve Wynn] was truly invested in our marketplace."
All in all, taking Steve Wynn out of the casino process will perhaps minimize the circus-y quality of the race. Ah well. At least we'll always have the renderings of River Walk Park (it's not a boardwalk).
· Casino bidder vows to build $278M entertainment complex [Philadelphia Business Journal]
· With Wynn withdrawal, competitors step up rhetoric [Philadelphia Business Journal]
· Blatstein: Wynn never 'truly invested' in Philadelphia [Philadelphia Business Journal]
Loading comments...