Casino news source: Pittburgh Tribune-Review - http://www.pittsburghlive.com
North Shore casino plan could be approved if deadlines are met on traffic impact
By Andrew Conte
TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Saturday, May 26, 2007
Pittsburgh's planning director said Friday she will recommend approval of a North Shore casino's development plan, as long as it meets deadlines related to traffic studies and improvements.
"If it's going to be approved, it's going to be approved with conditions," Planning Director Noor Ismail said.
The Planning Commission plans to vote Tuesday on a master development proposal for Majestic Star Casino, which would sit west of the Carnegie Science Center.
The vote is the first of several hurdles Majestic Star must clear before construction starts, Ismail said. It will need subsequent approval for its building shell, amenities, signage and traffic.
Officials with the Steelers, Pirates and Carnegie Science Center have raised concerns that casino traffic could cause congestion, particularly on game days at the nearby stadiums. The science center yesterday dropped a demand that Majestic Star build a pedestrian tunnel, linking the center's main building and its UPMC SportsWorks attraction.
Detroit-based casino operator Don Barden has agreed to conduct a more extensive traffic study, as long as Majestic Star can proceed with building the casino. Barden still needs state Supreme Court approval of the license awarded him in December by state gambling regulators. Two losing bidders appealed.
"We're more than happy to do a game day study, provided it's not a condition of master site plan approval," Majestic Star spokesman Bob Oltmanns said. "We're happy to do it, but let us proceed."
Ismail said her staff is "on the same page" with Majestic Star over its request that it be allowed to start work on the casino while it conducts a more detailed traffic study.
Without a study of game day traffic, no one knows what problems -- if any -- a North Shore casino would cause, said Robert D. Brooks, a consultant hired by the Steelers. He said the city should not approve the master development plan until Majestic Star completes a more detailed traffic study, which could take up to two years.
"It may very well fit in," said Brooks, national design manager for Parsons Brinckerhoff Sports & Entertainment.
But it's possible, he said, that additional North Shore cars could delay fans and slow emergency response vehicles. The Steelers made many traffic changes before moving into Heinz Field, and the arrival of casino patrons could thwart those improvements, he said.
"The concern is, right now there is an acceptable level of congestion on the North Shore," Brooks said. "A casino was never envisioned."
The Steelers are ready to do whatever it takes to make sure their fans can get to and from Heinz Field after the casino opens, team President Art Rooney II said.
Rooney said the Steelers are reviewing options, and he did not rule out appealing to the state Supreme Court if the Planning Commission approves the casino plan without requiring a traffic study first.
Separately, Barden spoke again yesterday with science center Director Joanna Haas. She had said the center would appeal to the state Supreme Court if Barden refused to accept all of the center's stipulations, including having the casino build an underground pedestrian tunnel.
The science center dropped its demand for the tunnel, Haas said. But center officials still want access to its site for buses and emergency vehicles, special lighting on the casino that won't interfere with stargazing, and a promise that a future Majestic Star hotel would be built on the opposite side of the casino.
"We're not trying to cause unnecessary delays in a large-scale project," Haas said. "We're trying to protect our assets." |
|
World Casino Directory 
Gambling Forums 
