Neil Bluhm | Photo: Michael Bryant, for The Inquirer
- SugarHouse Casino chairman Neil Bluhm flew in from Chicago, reports The Inquirer, in order to testify in front of the state Gaming Control Board that the Market8 casino proposal team is correct in projecting what it would take from Philadelphia’s first licensed casino: $100 million in annual revenue. Bluhm added that “anything near the numbers that the proponents have used… would result in our property not being worth its debt, and that would result in severe financial problems when we have to refinance the debt.” Bob Green, chairman of Bensalem’s Parx Casino concurred; in the hope of going from one viable casino to two, the city would ensure that it would have none.
- The Philadelphia Real Estate Blog says that many attendees of the North Liberties Neighbors Association Zoning Committee meeting this week were perplexed yet excited by a proposal from Gene DeSimone to construct an 8-story mixed use tower—part café, part auto showroom, part apartment complex—at Delaware & Fairmount Avenues. DeSimone and his lawyer touted the ISA Architecture/Research-designed building as an ideal location to put “a bridge between the waterfront and the neighborhood.”
- Next City relates the findings of a new study from the Center City District and the Central Philadelphia Development Corporation suggesting that the City could bolster the tax base while retaining firms by restructuring tax collection towards land buildings and away from the cost of working itself.“For example,” states the report, “increasing average Class A rents downtown $1 per square foot—from $27 to $28 per square foot—would yield $8.2 million more each year in real estate taxes just from the central business district.”
- After stumbling upon the existence of Philadelphia FIGHT AIDS’s library—“a library devoted to treatments, nutrition and the history of AIDS, and referrals to regional and national resources”—NewsWorks’sSusan Perloff started to wonder what other underappreciated libraries Philadelphia had to offer. Here are seven of her favorite finds.
- Police Commissioner Charles Ramsey unequivocally rejected calls for the opening of a police mini-station in Southwest Germantown during a meeting with crime-weary residents in the Queen Lane regional rail station on Wednesday night.“Beyond a lack of financial resources and available personnel for the proposal, Ramsey related a very practical reason to oppose the idea: Every neighborhood in Philadelphia would want one.”
About the author
Stephen Currall recently received his BA in history from Arcadia University. Before beginning doctoral studies, he is pursuing his interest in local history, specifically just how Philadelphians engage their vibrant past. Besides skimming through 18th century letters, Steve is also interested in music and travel.
