First slot machine arrives!!!
The first slot machine has arrived in Pennsylvania!!!
Not mine, of course.
There was a bunch of hoopla yesterday in the Pocono region of Pennsylvania, when the "first" slot machine was unveiled. It was at the Pocono Downs racetrack, near Wilkes-Barre. (About 2.5 hours drive away from here)
Mohegan Sun (yup... the tribal gaming authority in Connecticut) bet big on Pocono Downs to win one of just a handful of slot licenses in the state , and invested in the Downs tracks heavily.
Note that the track is NOT on Mohegan land.
Still, over a year ago, they began pumping $70 Million into renovations to the Pocono track... getting it ready for slots... "just in case".
They also paid $50 Million just for the license!!!
But they were betting those big bucks on what wasn't necessarily a "sure thing". Supposedly, no one knew "for sure" who would get a license, and who wouldn't.
The state finally started handing out "temporary" licenses less than two weeks ago.
Now, the Mohegan Sun AT Pocono Downs is scheduled to open November 14th , in just over a month, because of the Mohegan tribe "foresight". Their slots are rolling into the state already.
And it will be well into next year before other licensees (near Philly and Pittsburgh) will be ready.
Logicprobe's moral of the story:
It looks like the Mohegans correctly predicted that the right amont of "investment" money will quickly get you seated in Pennsylvania... without a "reservation".
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