"Sun" Sunday - "Sun-ny" in Philedelphia?

It was reported this week that the Mohegan Sun Tribe signed on as a partner to the casino venture once sought after from their neighbors at Foxwoods.  Mohergan Gaming advisers would be operating the gaming/entertainment portion of an "urban entertainment center."  Mitchell Etess, Mohegan Chief executive officer said "It's in our geographic wheelhouse....We've been preparing for this type of expansion for years."

Mohegan Sun, CT

It is this blogger's question whether this plan was being made parallel to the Massachusetts license, or that it was a Plan B considering the strong competition from the likes of MGM, Penn National and Hard Rock International with their Springfield, MA proposals.  But we have a long way to go before the Massachusetts story is played out.

"We believe we are capable of getting both licenses (Philadelphia & Palmer)," Etess said.  And it seems at least one gaming analyst agrees.  Greg Roselli of UBS Securities, says the Mohegan brand is "well regarded in the northeast."

The Mohegans also own Mohegan Sun at Pocono Downs, a racetrack in Wilkes-Barre, PA, and recently acquired part ownership of Resorts Casino Hotel in Atlantic City.

Mohegan Sun at Pocono Downs

Financial problems, placement and the competition from Sugar House in Philly, with three other casinos operating outside Philly, caused Foxwoods and Las Vegas Mogul Steve Wynn to pull out of the project in 2010.  However, Sugar House Casino is said to have out-performed projections, and the Pennsylvania market continues to grow.

Called MARKET8, the project is one of six vying for the second Philadelphia license.  Among those in the mix are Penn National - also vying for the western Mass license.

Gaming regulators are expected to make the decision by the end of the year, as is Massachusetts.

That's all for now!

Binbin