HARRISBURG, Pa.-
Gambling regulators on Wednesday approved the first slot-machine licenses in Pennsylvania, and some racetracks could start operating the machines as early as the end of the year.
The seven-member Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board unanimously approved licenses for five locations: Mohegan Sun at Pocono Downs, just outside Wilkes-Barre; Philadelphia Park in Bensalem; Harrah’s Chester Casino & Racetrack; Penn National Race Course near Harrisburg; and The Meadows in suburban Pittsburgh.
The state’s sixth horse-racing track–Presque Isle Downs, under construction near Erie–is likely to hear about its fate in late October.
The approvals mark the biggest advance toward making casino-style gambling a reality in the Keystone State, more than two years after the state legalized up to 61,000 slot machines at 14 venues statewide.
Some of the racetracks plan to open slots casinos before the end of the year, and the rest would open next year.
The track owners include the nation’s largest casino operator, Harrah’s Entertainment Inc., and the Mohegan Indian tribe, which operates the huge Mohegan Sun casino in Connecticut.
The conditional licenses were included in Pennsylvania’s July 2004 law that legalized slot machines as a way to give racetracks a head start in building gambling halls.
In December, the gaming board plans to decide whether to issue permanent slots licenses to the racetracks, as well as to distribute seven additional slots licenses.
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