Anti-casino activists plan 'citizen election'

Anti-casino activists aren't going to let a little thing like a court injunction stop a referendum on casino construction in Philadelphia.

A state Supreme Court injunction has temporarily removed a referendum to rezone casinos in Philadelphia off Tuesday's ballot, but activists will hold their own non-binding election to prove to Harrisburg that they won't just sit back and allow casino construction to take place.

The court issued the preliminary injunction last month in preparation for a ruling regarding an amendment to the city charter that would have forbidden construction of casinos within 1,500 feet of schools, churches, parks, playgrounds and homes - effectively stopping the two slots parlors granted licenses by the state to operate in the city from breaking ground.

The court also declined to expedite its final ruling on the legality of the amendment, forcing the city Board of Elections to place a sticker over the ballot question which will have to be removed at considerable expense should the court end up allowing the referendum.

Anti-casino activists aren't taking that chance, however.

Daniel Hunter, a spokesman for Casino-Free Philadelphia, said his group will hold a non-binding election on Tuesday that will run parallel to the city's.

Philadelphians registered to vote will be able to cast a vote for or against the charter amendment at high-traffic locations like City Hall and Rittenhouse Square.

They will also be able to go online or call in their votes, which will cross-reference with a database of registered voters to ensure that people only vote once.

"It's a real election," Hunter said.

He added that the effort itself may be more important than the outcome.

"It creates a political will" and applies pressure to Harrisburg to rewrite the law that brought gambling to the state in the first place, Hunter said. It is meant to "emphasize the depth of city-wide support" for his group's anti-casino activities.

Brian Abernathy, legislative aid to Frank DiCicco, the casinos' main opponent in City Council, admitted that the citizen's election probably won't change how the Supreme Court decides the case - but at this point, it may not matter.

Abernathy said it would be almost impossible - and highly expensive - to put the casino question back on the ballot.

Still, he said that DiCicco, whose district includes the proposed SugarHouse and Foxwoods casino sites, appreciates the fact that "people's voices are going to be heard. Unfortunately, I don't think anyone in Harrisburg is listening."

But Doug Harbach, spokesman for the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board, which awarded licenses to the two casinos, defended the state's decision and criticized attempts to move the casinos' putative locations.

"The casinos were placed in the right locations per law and were based on the significant amount of evidence collected by the board," he said.

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