Two weeks ago a high level summit meeting took place in East Falls, one that might determine the future of gaming in Philadelphia. This secret—and so far unreported—discussion took place between Governor Rendell’s left hand and his right hand. The result was that his right hand convinced his left hand to leave the casinos in their current location.
Left hand: I promised the residents of Fishtown, Northern Liberties, Society Hill, Pennsport, Whitman and the other residential communities along the Delaware River that I would try to relocate the Sugar House and Foxwoods casinos. You are the one who has been pushing gambling on the waterfront for years and, I might add, the one that pulls the slot machine levers in Atlantic City and Las Vegas. What have you done to keep my promise?
Right hand: I asked the casinos operators to move. I asked them nicely. I shook their hands. They said no.
Left hand: You asked them? You are the right hand of the Governor of this Commonwealth. You are the hand that signed the act that created the gaming industry inPennsylvania. All you did was ask them?
Right hand: What else could I do? Gaming in Pennsylvania has been a done deal for years, you know.
Light hand: Done deal? Done deal? It is only a done deal if you allow it to be a done deal. Instead of asking the casinos to move you could tell them to move.
Right hand: How? How? The licenses have already been awarded.
Left hand: Let’s see: (1) Support legislation banning casinos within 1500 foot of a residential area. (2) Come out for and promise to sign legislation allowing the casinos to move to the airport, which is far from all residential neighborhoods inPhiladelphia. (3) Ask your appointees on the gaming control commission to resign and appoint new ones who would open up the casino siting process to a real period of public comment and who would take into account the horrible problems these casinos would create in residential neighborhoods. (4) Ask the legislature to scrap Act 91 and start over. (5) If worse comes to worse, introduce and promise to sign legislation that would give the casinos a financial reason to move to better locations. It wouldn’t be the first time you gave a handout to a business that didn’t need one—remember the executive order you signed giving Comcast $30 million for their tower? You know, if you would let me use your fingers to keep counting, I could easily give you another five things you could do.
Right hand: All those things could be done. But each one would take a lot of work and political capital. I have other issues to focus on such as energy and health insurance. My efforts in those areas, along with increasing the minimum wage and dedicated transit funding, make up my legacy as Governor. I can’t put all them all aside to take up the casino issue again.
Left hand: But if you don’t act on the casino issue, your legacy is going to be a horrible waste of the wonderful Delaware waterfront. Fifty years from now, when an urban historian point out that the reclamation of waterfronts in Baltimore, San Francisco, New York, and elsewhere was critical to the ongoing renewal of American cities, they will also point to the creation of casinos along the Delaware as the moment that Philadelphia let greatness pass her by.
Right hand, gesturing heatedly: What do want me to do? What do you want me to do? Why is this my responsibility? I’m just the right hand of the Governor. I just sign the bills. Blame the legislature which writes them.
Left hand: That’s right, blame the legislature. That excuse worked for the City Council of Philadelphia; it might work for you, too. But you are the one who has been pushing casinos for years. You shook hands with all those casino operators and slot machine makers.
Right hand: Yes, but while I was shaking their hands, you were taking their campaign contribution checks.
With that retort, Rendell’s left hand started shaking uncontrollably and then stopped and fell limp.
And so, with the summit over, Rendell announced that the casinos will not be moved.
But whether that is the final word, depends not just on Rendell’s hands, but on yours. Because his right hand is correct about one thing. Rendell is just the Governor. But if we the people hold hands while moving forward together, we will decide whether casinos on theDelaware are a done deal or not.