Planned Pittsburgh
casino on the brink of collapse
If
the ownership changes are not approved quickly by the
Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board, the Pittsburgh casino project
will go down the drain, according to investor Neil Bluhm. A fast
decision is needed in order to save the failed casino project,
Bluhm testified before the state Senate Community and Economic
Development Committee in Harrisburg. Neil Bluhm is the principal
of Pittsburgh Gaming Holdings LP, the company which is trying to
save the casino, after the majority holder, Detroit businessman
Don Barden, failed to find enough investments to complete the
casino project.
Yesterday Bluhm said Pittsburgh Gaming
had upped its equity investment to $170 million, and that the
cost of the project would likely be closer to $800 million, but
warned that Credit Suisse, the primary lender, had notified
Barden that it was in default and could begin foreclosure
proceedings. If this happens, the casino project will turn into
a quagmire of lawsuits. "We need gaming board approval and
closing of the financing on acceptable terms, and all this must
happen quickly because it may no longer be feasible past July
30. That is a key date, when the existing construction contracts
may no longer hold," Bluhm was quoted.
Published on
07/25/2008
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