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**Dignann** · 12-18-2006, 11:59 AM

Re: Gettysburg Casino: The Final Countdown.

This is the week that the decision will be made, expected to be handed down on Wednesday. No doubt the papers will be filled with all sorts of information, as both sides stage last-minute efforts to sway the board.

Slots leaves community divided

By MEG BERNHARDT

Hanover Evening Sun
December 17, 2006

An issue characterized as one of the most divisive in Adams County history will be up for a vote Wednesday.

State gaming regulators are expected to make a decision on what's been called the second battle of Gettysburg � whether to give a license to Crossroads Gaming Resort and Spa just east of town.

The project has attracted national attention because of its proximity to the renowned battlefield, but locally Gettysburgians have said it's torn the small town apart as individuals, organizations and businesses line up to take a stand for or against it.

"With this project, more than any other, both sides have significant numbers that want to see the project and don't want to," said Doug Harbach, the spokesman for state gaming regulators after about 300 spectators packed into a Harrisburg hearing room last week.

All those involved say it's been a long 21 months since the $350-million project was announced in April 2005, but on Wednesday the issue could be decided. The seven-member Pennsylvania Gaming and Control Board in Harrisburg has said it hopes to award the licenses after completing final hearings on the proposals last week. In all, it will award 14 slots licenses, but only two standalone parlors like Crossroads will be licensed outside Philadelphia and Pittsburgh.

To sway gaming regulators, Civil War re-enactors have walked the halls in Harrisburg calling the battlefield a national shrine. Trade union leaders have rallied at the Capitol to support better jobs in the area.

It will save the town, proponents say, by creating a year-round economy and more jobs locally. And Crossroads announced a pledge last week to give at least $1 million annually to local charities.

But opponents contend a slots parlor near Gettysburg will ruin the character and identity of the heritage-tourism site, changing it from a family-friendly community to a casino town.

Despite the opposition, the local casino investors who proposed the project have kept the application alive.

"I've never had a second thought about my decision," David LeVan, the lead local investor and CEO of Crossroads, said last week. "I think this is the best thing for Adams County."

The board will consider which proposals will generate the most revenue, as well as potential economic impact, public reaction, highway access, diversity goals and plans for handling compulsive gambling.

Many in Gettysburg are asking how much public reaction will sway the board. More than 64,000 signatures opposing the project have been sent to the Gaming Control Board, and national historic preservation groups have led outcry against the project. Supporters have come in droves to hearings and sent in petitions with more than 5,000 signatures on their side.

The Evening Sun has published more than 200 articles and editorials on the topic and listed it as one of the most important stories of the year in 2005, and it's likely to draw that same honor in 2006.

As the issue is drawing to a close, here are the questions and answers that have dominated the debate on the casino proposal:

How far away is the site from the battlefield?

As the crow flies, the Route 30 entrance to Crossroads is 1.25 miles from the closest battlefield point, the northwest corner of East Cavalry Battlefield. It's 2.96 miles from the current visitor center and 2.99 from the new museum and visitor center. To Gettysburg College, it's 2.25 miles and 2.68 miles to the Eternal Light Peace Memorial.

Driving distance to East Cavalry Battlefield at the bend in Cavalry Field Road near 401 Cavalry Field Road is 1.56 miles, driving up Cavalry Field Road. It's 3.43 miles to the current visitor center going down York Road and through town. To the future museum and visitors center, it's about 5.46 miles driving down Route 15 and up Route 97. It's 2.9 miles driving to Gettysburg College, from York Road, through town and up Washington Street. And it's 4.01 to the Eternal Peace Light Memorial, going down York Road, through town and up Mummasburg Road.

* Distance calculations were made with the help of Network Building and Consulting, LLC and information obtained on www.Mapquest.com.

What will it do to jobs?

Crossroads estimates it will hire about 1,000 people on site and another 2,000 jobs will be created from economic "spin off." There's also an additional 1,443 construction jobs before it is built. But No Casino Gettysburg has argued many construction jobs will be taken by union workers who live in Harrisburg and other surrounding areas. The union representatives have not provided information about how many contractors or construction workers live or operate in Adams County. Opponents to the project have also argued the casino will draw money away from tourist spending in the area, but Crossroads has said it will run cooperative programs with local businesses, and will also offer shuttles to downtown Gettysburg for casino patrons.

"Workers would have the benefit of working in one of strongest and most stable industries in America and would not have the fear from layoffs," said Pro Casino Adams County member Jeff Klein.

Will it cause traffic?

Crossroads' study of seven intersections along Route 30 estimates the site will generate 2,294 trips on a typical Saturday at midday after the facility has been built to full capacity with 5,000 slots. It has pledged $3.6 million for off-site traffic improvements, including widening Route 30. "It clearly shows that traffic around Crossroads will not hinder the day-to-day lives of local citizens," LeVan has said about the traffic study.

But the real concern is what will happen to traffic in the small borough of Gettysburg. Crossroads has said it will run a shuttle bus service to take patrons there, but if the shuttles are unpopular, than there could be a significant amount of traffic going into the borough.

How big will it be?

The four-star casino, resort and spa will be located on a 57 acre property. The building will be less than 50 feet tall and be surrounded by a "park like setting" with fountains and landscaping. It would be "tasteful, elegant and attractive," said architect Ian Cope. The first phase of the building will be 3,000 slots with a 225-room hotel, 30,000 square foot spa and a parking garage with five stories above ground. The resort will also have a variety of dining venues in the building, as well as space for live entertainment.

If more slots are approved later by the state, Crossroads plans on adding 2,000 more slots and 110 more hotel rooms, as well as additional parking.

What about compulsive gamblers?

Many Gettysburg community members have told stories about loved ones who have lost everything to gambling and church leaders have said it can ruin families. So what steps will be taken to combat the problem?

The state was late in opening a required state-run hot-line for compulsive gamblers. But now it is up and running, with nine state Department of Health employees who are addiction counselors, some of whom are undergoing training for counseling in compulsive gambling.

Crossroads operator Millennium has also promised to take steps to address this problem. All employees will be trained and senior-level employee will be responsible for addressing the concern, said co-owner William Wortman. He's also said the company will provide education, referral to counseling, restrict problem gamblers' access to the facility and its promotions, and fund counseling programs.

Who's leading the charge on both sides?

� Crossroads CEO David LeVan owns Battlefield Harley-Davidson with his wife, Jennifer. Immediately identifiable by his characteristic braided pony tail, LeVan was born in Gettysburg and attended Gettysburg College. His father was a plumber, "who taught me the value of hard work," LeVan said. He went on to become the CEO of Conrail Inc. in Philadelphia, eventually leaving to return to Gettysburg and open the motorcycle dealership. He has become one of Gettysburg's leading philanthropists, and the Majestic Theater was recently named after him and his wife. Jennifer also owns "Just Jennifer," a gallery/shop in downtown Gettysburg.

� No Casino Gettysburg chairwoman Susan Star Paddock is a family therapist and published author. She and her husband Jim Paddock, a landscape architect, live on a historic farm in Cumberland Township, just west of the battlefield. Most of the land on the farm has been preserved by easements to prevent further development. Susan Paddock graduated from the University of Missouri and earned a master of social work at Temple University.

How important is East Cavalry Field, the closest part of the battlefield to the site?

The climactic cavalry battle of the Gettysburg campaign took place the afternoon of July 3, while just a few miles away the Confederates were trying to smash the center of the Union line at Gettysburg in what has become known as Pickett's Charge.

The battle at East Cavalry Field is also the source of one of the enduring myths at Gettysburg � that Gen. Robert E. Lee intended the cavalry attack in the Union rear to be part of a grand, coordinated assault to surround and destroy the Union army. But the Union victory at East Cavalry Field ended any chance of Gen. JEB Stuart supporting Lee's main army.

Completely separated from the rest of the battlefield, the East Cavalry Field is rarely visited.

Did casinos interfere with history tourism in Vicksburg?

Vicksburg, Miss., officials have jumped to the defense of their town, and described the casinos coming as a positive development that has helped the town flourish. They say it's paid for a convention center, better emergency protection and opportunities for historic organizations to work with casinos.

But when it comes to battlefield visitation numbers, the battlefield took a big hit in 1994, the first full year casinos were open, and during which two more casinos were opened. It fell by about 200,000 visitors, or 21 percent, from the 1993 number of 1.01 million visitors. Crossroads has claimed visitation went up 11 of 12 years since casinos were introduced in Vicksburg. But Crossroads' numbers start with 1991, the first year after gaming legislation was passed in 1990, not when casinos were actually opened in the Civil War town.

"As you can see, in 1991 there were 864,999 visitors," wrote Crossroads spokesman David La Torre. "Since then, the number of visitors has surpassed that mark in 11 of 12 years."

La Torre noted there was a national decline in park visitation in 1994, the only year where visitation dropped below the 1990 number. Nationally, park visitation dropped by about 4 million. But at Shiloh, another Civil War battlefield in the west, visitation numbers went up from 507, 480 to 527, 450. Gettysburg's also went up, by more than 90,000 visitors.

Vicksburg's numbers eventually went back up to its 1993 numbers, but it took until 1999. A consultant hired by the Civil War Preservation Trust points out that the 21-percent downturn in visitors after the casinos opened was only slightly less than the drops when the world price in oil doubled in the late 1970s and early 1980s, the introduction of visitor fees, and the closing of the nearby World's Fair in New Orleans.

Where were the preservationists when the rest of Route 30 was developed?

The casino will be located on a busy stretch of Route 30, right off an interchange with divided highway Route 15. Across the street is a brand new conference center and hotel complex. Down the road is a car dealership, Wal-Mart, strip malls and gas stations.

Many of the casino supporters are wondering why, in the middle of all that, national preservation groups are suddenly starting an outcry. No other development in the area has attracted that kind of opposition, they say.

"The interchange of Route 15 and 30 when it was built by PennDOT completely altered the landscape," said Pro Casino member Jeff Klein. "The businesses that have been built there have already changed the land."

He's said the preservation groups have lost touch with their missions of preserving actual battlefield ground.

"Right across the street you have Gateway Gettysburg, and if it's okay for Gateway Gettysburg, it's okay for any business to be built there," Klein said. "They're just using Gettysburg as a ploy to basically add to their coffers."

But for casino opponents, the question is not about preserving a piece of historic land, it's in protecting the identity of Gettysburg, they say.

"This could overshadow what Gettysburg is and why people come here," said No Casino Gettysburg member Jim Paddock.

He said preservationists are pragmatic � they know Gettysburg must grow, but some development is necessary, and other, like vice-tainted gambling, should be kept out to keep existing tourists. He said preservationists don't mind developments like Gateway Gettysburg because they promote heritage tourism.

Would the location bring more money to Pennsylvania than other sites?

Crossroads has told gaming regulators it is a good bet because it would draw 60 percent of its gamblers from northern Maryland, Baltimore, northern Virginia and Washington, D.C. That represents "one of the largest metro areas in the country without legalized gaming," LeVan said.

And he's quick to point out Crossroads would be lining state coffers with money from out-of-staters, unlike other projects.

"We are the best choice for maximizing revenue for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania," LeVan said.

Under state law, more than 50 percent of gaming revenues will go to the state. Of that, 34 percent will go for property tax relief; 12 percent for horse owners, breeders, and trainers; 5 percent to a special economic development fund; 2 percent for the host county and 2 percent for the host municipality � in this case, Straban Township. Crossroads estimates it will bring in more than $300 million in revenue annually, which will result in about $16 million going to Adams County governmental entities.

Crossroads also argued that its plan would avoid stretching the slots market thin in eastern Pennsylvania. All four of the projects competing with Crossroads are located either in the Poconos or the Lehigh Valley.

Crossroads marketing consultant Peter Tyson said awarding both licenses to those areas would mean Pennsylvania would get $128 million less in tax revenue than if it awarded a license to Crossroads. He pointed out the proximity of the proposals to Pocono Downs in Luzerne County, which opened the state's first slots parlor in November.

A Wall Street bond analyst also recently predicted licensing Crossroads would be the best setup for the state to make more money, citing many of the same arguments Crossroads has used.

Judging from the gaming board's questions to Crossroads in a hearing last week, the biggest factor to its revenue generation could be when and if slots are also legalized in Maryland. Crossroads estimates it would lose about 17 percent of profit if slots are opened at race tracks there.

Is there political support for this?

Not a lot. Adams County Commissioner Tom Weaver has been a trumpeter for Crossroads since he decided this year to support the project. He has appeared in debates with Paddock and testified before the gaming board that the location for Crossroads fits perfectly into the county's long-term land use and economic development plans. And recently elected state house representative Dan Moul, R-Conewago Township, has said he supports "the peoples' rights under the law to apply for the license."

"If they are fortunate enough to obtain a license, they have the right to do it," he has said.

Moul was painted as an avid casino supporter during the election, but still pulled off a victory, indicating Adams County voters are not bothered by casino support.

Adams County Commissioner Glenn Snyder has said he does not support gambling but does support "free enterprise."

On the other hand, Adams County Commissioner Lucy Lott, Gov. Edward Rendell, Sen. Arlen Specter, Congressman Todd Platts, Congressman Frank Wolf, former state Rep. Steve Maitland, state Rep. Steve Nickol, state Rep. Paul Clymer and state Sen. Vincent Fumo and numerous political candidates have all opposed the project.

http://www.eveningsun.com/fastsearchresults/ci_4856820

Eric

**laudable_pus** · 12-18-2006, 12:01 PM

Re: Gettysburg Casino: The Final Countdown.

Not to offend anyone, but being that it is the Christmas season, what better time than to offer up prayers for Gettysburg? To my knowledge there is no "patron saint of historic preservation" so perhaps St. Helena , the patron of archaeologists, would be an appropriate intercessor. So, for we papists, here's one for the greatest of our battlefields. Those of other faiths please feel free to add your prayers also.

Holy and blessed St. Helena,
with love and devotion you sought to find
the holiest sites and artifacts in Christendom.

I plead for your intercession on behalf of the Gettysburg battlefield,
that it's pastoral fields, martial honor, and artistic glory remain untarnished by the threat of gambling and greed and all the evil influences that that accompany them.

Under your protection, may we carry the Cross of historic perservation which the Lord Jesus Christ has given us in this life and one day may we may share with you the Crown of life eternal.

St. Helena, patron of archelogists, pray for us.

Father William Corby, Chaplain of the Irish Brigade at Gettysburg, pray for us.

Sisters of Charity, caregivers to the wounded at Gettysburg, pray for us.

Amen.

**Dignann** · 12-19-2006, 12:52 PM

Re: Gettysburg Casino: The Final Countdown.

It will only take one "no" vote.

Gaming board�s slots license vote could be a nail-biter

BY SCOT PITZER

Gettysburg Times
December 19, 2006

The licensing process for a proposed Adams County slots parlor near Gettysburg could hinge on a single vote from any member of the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board.

A licensing session is scheduled for Wednesday morning at The Forum in Harrisburg.

�It will be a public vote,� board spokesman Doug Harbach said, adding that a roll call will be taken. �By legislation, we must have a majority.�

One �no� vote by a member of the seven-member panel could sink the $350-million Straban Township slots proposal, Crossroads Gaming Resort and Spa.

Gaming legislation requires the board to reach a solid consensus when awarding licenses: a super-majority of five votes is needed.

A super-majority must include all four appointees of the legislative caucuses � Jeffrey Coy, Ray Angeli, Kenneth T. McCabe and Chip Marshall. If any of those board members vote against the Gettysburg application, Crossroads� application is practically denied.

�All of those members have veto power,� Harbach said. �If one votes against it, that vetoes the project.�

The super-majority consensus must also include one of the board�s three gubernatorial appointees (Mary DiGiacomo Collins, Sanford Rivers and chairman Tad Decker).

The board, which is considering five standalone slots applications, has two licenses to award.

Harbach indicated that the board, which doesn�t want to postpone the licensing process, expects to make its final decision Wednesday.

�A lot of hard work has gone into this,� Harbach said. �And as we saw during the public input hearings, there is a lot of interest in this specific proposal.�

In an effort to reach a unified vote, Harbach indicated that the gaming board will likely deliberate in an executive session Tuesday, and possibly Wednesday.

�They�ll try to come to some sort of unanimous conclusion, much like a court jury would do,� Harbach said.

Pennsylvania code restricts what public officials are allowed to discuss in executive session, but the gaming panel � because it is considered a quasi-judicial board � is permitted to deliberate behind closed doors.

http://www.gettysburgtimes.com/news/front2.shtml

Eric

**DougCooper** · 12-20-2006, 08:34 AM

Re: Gettysburg Casino: The Final Countdown.

As we hold our breath today (and offer prayers) as the decision is made, I would like to personally thank those of us who have worked so hard locally and regionally to win this fight. Dusty, Chris, Erik, all the folks at CWPT and many others of us on this forum and throughout the hobby who have sent letters, e-mails, signed petitions, passed out flyers, coordinated efforts and communication, gathered intel and assisted No Casino Gettysburg and CWPT and generally done everything that could be done to get our message across.

Most of the country is appalled that Pennsylvania would even consider such a thing. Now we find out if the Gaming Board was listening. May the spirit of the soldiers who fought and died there, and the words of Abraham Lincoln guide their thoughts.

Don't gamble with Gettysburg!

**CJDaley** · 12-20-2006, 09:10 AM

Re: Gettysburg Casino: The Final Countdown.

The vote will beging at 10am this morning. We should know by noon est what the fate of G-burg is. Keep yer fingers crossed.

BTW: There will be a No Casino party tonight in Gettysburg. If we win or lose, we've decided to have a party to thank all those who worked hard to stop the casino.

If you're in town, please stop by.

Wed., Dec. 20 from 4PM on at the historic Farnsworth House Tavern, 401 Baltimore St, Gettysburg.

**CJDaley** · 12-20-2006, 11:27 AM

Re: Gettysburg Casino: The Final Countdown.

from www.timesleader.com

Gaming Board meeting underway

The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board began its meeting today 45 minutes late. They are discussing routine business and then are expected to vote to award five standalone slot-machine casino licenses.

Voting is expected to begin shortly and results will be posted here as they are announced.

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Gettysburg Casino: The Final Countdown.

Gettysburg Casino: The Final Countdown.

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