Wendy Hamilton, the general manager of Sugarhouse Casino in Philadelphia, was excited. Her property has endured a year of construction with a 4 million expansion project getting under way last summer. But with last week’s topping off ceremony, it means she’s that much closer to grand opening, which she says should occur by the end of the year.
“This expansion is mission-critical for SugarHouse to remain strong in a market that’s crazy competitive,” Hamilton said.
Greg Carlin, the CEO of Sugarhouse’s parent company, Rush Street Gaming, is ready to hand over the keys to Hamilton.
“They’ve been working with a short deck,” Carlin said. “With this expansion, Wendy and the team will finally have a property that’s worthy of their talents.”
Sugarhouse was slated for 3,000 slot machines when it was awarded a license in 2006. But zoning and permitting difficulties, political infighting and a depressed economy kept the property confined to its original footprint until last year. In July, Sugarhouse offered 1,604 slot machines. It plans to add another 289 slots in the new expansion, along with 44 more table games, and a poker room that will boast an additional 28 games. Included in the expansion are two more restaurants and a 30,000 square foot events center fronting the Delaware River. Total construction costs for the property will reach $559 million when Phase 2 is complete, more than the initially pledged $500 million at the 2006 licensing.
But Sugarhouse is not yet out of the woods. A second casino license for the city has been issued by the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board to a partnership between the Cordish Companies of Baltimore and the owners of Parx Casino in Bensalem, but a suit by Sugarhouse has kept it on the drawing board so far. That won’t last long.
“We’re going to attract a whole new customer base that I don’t think is coming currently to SugarHouse, but I’m very concerned about a second casino in Philly,” Carlin told the Philadelphia Inquirer.
