Sept. 5

By Kellie Patrick Gates
For PlanPhilly

      The city of Philadelphia Friday asked the State Supreme Court to reconsider its August 22 decision upholding SugarHouse Casino's submerged lands license – permission the casino needs to build its waterfront casino as planned.
      The license was granted during the last days of Mayor John Street's administration. Soon after Mayor Michael Nutter took office, his administration told SugarHouse they were revoking it. The Nutter team first said proper procedure was not followed, then, after further review, that the city never had the right to issue the riparian lands license in the first place. That power, they said, rests exclusively with the state legislature.
      But the majority of justices agreed with SugarHouse's legal team that the legislature gave the city the power to grant submerged licenses via a 1907 law, and that subsequent legislation did not repeal that act. The court also said that SugarHouse's license still stands, despite the city's attempt to revoke it.
      Terry Gillen, Mayor Michael Nutter's senior adviser for economic development and his casino point person, confirmed Friday evening that the petition to reconsider had been filed, but said she could not offer details on its content, since she has not yet reviewed the document.
      But shortly after the Court posted its decision, Richard Feder, the city's chief deputy solicitor for appeals, said a request for the Court to reconsider the portion of its decision that applies to the revocation of the lease would be the city's most likely legal action.
      Legal teams for both the city and the group of state legislators who filed the Supreme Court case said the decision's implication is that a license to use government land is irrevocable. Feder said in the days after the decision that precedence indicates such a license is always revocable, so this "seems like a gigantic change in the law" that would have implications beyond Philadelphia.
      The decision does not explicitly say a submerged lands, or riparian, license cannot be revoked. Writing for the majority, Justice Ronald Castile said that the city's Notice of Revocation issued to SugarHouse in January was invalid because the city tried to revoke it after the period for SugarHouse to file an appeal had passed and no notice of the revocation was given nor a hearing on the matter held, among other reasons.
      While the standing court decision says SugarHouse has the right for the riparian land, Gillen said the casino this week stopped digging on it at the city's request. Just last week, the city agreed SugarHouse could, in light of the court's decision, do rough grading work on that portion of the site. The city sent inspectors to the site to be sure the casino was within the scope of its rough-grading permit, and also was reviewing the casino's permits. Staff concluded that the casino needs the permission of the state Department of Environmental protection to dig on the riparian land, Gillen said. SugarHouse says it already has all the proper clearances to dig there, Gillen said, but they did stop the work.

Foxwoods followup
      In other casino-related news, the city, state and Foxwoods representatives had "a couple of conference calls" this week to discuss the possible relocation of the proposed South Philadelphia casino.
      The governor, the mayor, and a group of elected state officials announced in late September that Foxwoods was considering some alternative, non-waterfront sites. The elected leaders appointed representatives to a working group to discuss the issues involved in a possible relocation, hence the conference calls. The casino has not promised it would move, only that it would consider other sites. The group will continue its work next week, Gillen said. She expects results - one way or the other - within the next few weeks.

Contact the reporter at kelliespatrick@gmail.com