Steve Wynn Takes Over Philadelphia Casino Project

Steve Wynn has had great success in Las Vegas and Macau but will his brand of casino luxury play in Philadelphia? Wynn Resorts has announced that it entered into a letter of intent with Philadelphia Entertainment and Development Partners, LP to take over the PDEP casino project planned for the Philadelphia waterfront. The PDEP is a group of investors who joined with the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation to win a casino license in 2006. The tribe runs two Foxwoods casinos in Connecticut but ran into financial trouble last year. The agreement is subject to the approval of the Pennsylvania Gaming Board. Wynn attended the University of Pennsylvania and stated in a release that "Philadelphia has always felt like home to me."

The Philadelphia casino project was originally a Foxwoods project but Foxwoods missed a December deadline to provide detailed architectural and engineering plans. According to the Philadelphia Daily News, the Gaming Control Board fined Foxwoods $2,000 per day for missing the deadline (the fees are now in the six figures). The project developers were facing the possibility of further sanctions, including losing the casino license. Wynn will take majority control of the project and be responsible for financing, building and running the casino.