Hollywood Casino Morgantown would be in Caernarvon Township, Berks County
The township of Springettsbury, Pennsylvania, hosted a hearing of the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board at its township building last week, to hear testimony on Penn National Gaming’s planned mini-casino in the township.
Before that hearing was done, the operator announced that it has filed its application with the board for its second Category 4 satellite casino, to be built on a 36-acre site in Caernarvon Township, in Berks County near the city of Morgantown.
At press time, there were few community representatives on the list to speak before the board in York hearing, but Penn National officials offered a more complete view of the mini-casino it will call Hollywood Casino York, to be located in a former Sears location at the York Galleria mall.
The Gaming Control Board hosted the public hearing as part of its process to determine whether to grant a license for the casino, said Doug Harbach, a spokesman for board, in comments to the York Daily Record.
At press time, the newspaper listed mostly Penn National Gaming management and community leaders, including Kevin Schreiber and Blanda Nace of the York County Economic Alliance, and Springettsbury Township supervisor Charles Wurster. Only two individuals had signed up to speak.
Penn National plans to open with 500 slots and 20 gaming tables, according to the application. A mini-casino, or Category 4 license, authorizes an existing state licensee a satellite facility with 300 to 750 slot machines and, with an additional $2 million added to the $10 million license fee, up to 30 table games initially, with option to add 10 more live tables later.
Hollywood Casino York also will have a 136-seat casual dining restaurant, a 32-seat bar, a lounge with a small stage and a 23-seat Grab N’ Go Grill in the casino, the application states.
Meanwhile, the company announced that Hollywood Casino Morgantown, near the intersection of state Route 10 and the Pennsylvania Turnpike, will be a ground-up, 80,000-square-foot facility offering both slots and table games. According to Penn officials, the $111 million facility will open with 750 slots and 30 table games, and will include a sports and race book, a signature restaurant, an entertainment lounge and a food court.
The company said the facility is expected to generate approximately 250 new local jobs and more than 275 construction jobs. Following receipt of the license, it is estimated that the construction would take 18 months.
“While we explored numerous locations for our Category 4 casino in and around Berks County, the site we selected is unparalleled in terms of ease of access to three major arteries,” said Penn National Gaming CEO Timothy J. Wilmott in a statement. “Hollywood Casino Morgantown is ideally situated to generate new revenues from the more densely populated suburbs to the west of Philadelphia, while further protecting our existing market share at Hollywood Casino at Penn National Race Course.”
