7 Springs announced today no slots.


Seven Springs owner drops slots pursuit, citing Pirates' conflict
Tuesday October 17, 2006
By MARC LEVY
Associated Press Writer
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) A family that is a part-owner of the Pittsburgh Pirates is dropping its pursuit of a slot-machine gambling license for a southwestern Pennsylvania resort because of Major League Baseball's prohibition against having a gambling interest.

The Nutting family, which purchased Seven Springs Mountain Resort three months ago, said Tuesday in a statement that it is withdrawing the resort's application to operate up to 500 slot machines there.

The family had tried, but apparently failed, to find a way to work around Major League Baseball's gambling prohibition. It had proposed shedding its stake in Seven Springs' gambling enterprise, but state law requires the gambling license to be held by the owner of the resort where the slots parlor is located.

The dropout of Seven Springs, about 50 miles southeast of Pittsburgh, means the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board this year can award no more than 12 of the 14 licenses it is authorized to distribute.

The board hopes to decide on Dec. 20 from among the 20 remaining applicants competing for the 12 permanent licenses. Last month, the board awarded five conditional licenses to racetracks.

Two slots licenses were set aside for established resorts, but only two resorts Seven Springs and Nemacolin Woodlands Resort applied for them. Seven slots licenses are set aside for racetracks, but the state has only authorized six racetracks.

Gaming board spokesman Doug Harbach said the board likely would begin a second application round next year for any licenses that are not awarded in the current application process.

In July 2004, Pennsylvania legalized up to 61,000 slot machine at 14 racetracks, resorts and freestanding facilities as a way to generate money for local tax cuts, civic development projects and the horse-racing industry. That number of slot machines would make Pennsylvania the second-largest commercial slots state behind Nevada.

The Nutting family owns the Wheeling, W.Va.-based Ogden Newspapers chain. Robert Nutting, the chief executive of Ogden Newspapers, is also chairman of the board for the Pittsburgh Pirates.

This all plays into Nutting's plot to set up a shell company to purchase HV, get the slots license there, build a lift connecting the two resorts and wisk all the gambling fiens to HV from his hotel in 7S.

<sarcasm off>

I wish PA would give up on the slots. Period. But then fast Eddie would have to stop taking credit for property tax relief that isn't ever going to happen anyways.

That would be a fun lift ride on a windy day.

Chair nope, heated tram hell yeah.

To be honest I had no problem with 7 Springs having slots. The extra revenue might have helped offest climbing ticket prices and maybe fund new projects. I don't think anyone going to 7 Springs for slots would have been lured ont the hills so I doubt it would have caused overcrowding on the hill.

Heated tram, hopefully with restrooms on board! That would be an awfully long way!

I was thinking of more like a light rail...

Going back to the OP, I really can't say I care much either way. I don't get it. What does slot shav eot do with skiing? Why did we want them to get slots? Or not to get slots or whatever we wanted.

There was a whole other thread on this a few months back when it was announce that 7 Springs had gotten the licence under the Dupre family. There was a lot of debate on either side the general gist of which was one side being anti gambling due to the fact that it took away from the family atmosphere and would potentially cause overcrowding. The other side was in favor of slots because of the additional revenue it might bring in. I'm kind of with you. I have no objection to slots, hell if I'm bored I might even play for a while but I'd prefer to play some blackjack or something, but if it doesn't happen no biggie. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy a bit of gambling and slots would be fun but slots vs. snowboarding is no competetion.