There probably weren’t any developers eyeing Bridgeville as a potential location for one of Pennsylvania’s new small-scale casinos, but just to make sure, council passed a law in December banning such establishments from the borough.
Although council could repeal the ban in the future, then-mayor Pat DeBlasio criticized council for reflexively saying “no,” which could jeopardize future interest from developers.
“Being on the list of places that says, ‘No we don’t want mini-casinos’ puts you on a list and tell you about that community,” he said. “If we could find a place in Bridgeville for 300 slot machines, it might be an interesting idea to allow it.”
Late last year, Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf signed legislation creating a new class of casinos in the state. There will be up to 10 “category 4” casinos, each with between 300 to 750 slot machines.
Part of the state’s legislation allows local governments to exclude the new casinos from their zoning.
The new law also requires the new casinos to be 25 miles away from any existing casinos, unless the same company owns both facilities. Bridgeville’s location between the Rivers Casino in Pittsburgh and the Meadows Casino in Washington County would present a challenge.
Council voted 6-0 to enact the ban. Councilman Joe Verduci was not present.