Casinos prompt institution of special police units

By Eric Donovan
Collegian Staff
October 10, 2007

In light of the two new riverfront casinos moving into the city, the Philadelphia Police Department will create special police units for the casinos.

According to Deputy Commissioner Patricia Giorgio Fox in a community meeting last week, the special units will be formed to deal with traffic increase in addition to crime surrounding the casinos. These units will patrol their areas much in the same way as those that cover areas such as the Philadelphia stadiums district and South Street.

At a meeting Oct. 2, Fox and representatives of Sugarhouse Casino met with various community leaders and protest groups who have formed in the wake of the casino planning. The two new casinos, proposed to be in the Fishtown and New Kensington sections of Philadelphia, are under much scrutiny and protest by locals, who believe the casinos will bring increased problems into their communities.

Although there were protest groups present at the meeting, several did not attend, as they want the projects moved to different areas. They have been working with representatives for the past few months, and the recent creation of a special police unit has seemed to appease many.

“There would be dedicated people to that area, but it’s all in the planning stages at this point,” Lt. Frank Vanore said to the Philadelphia Inquirer.

At the meeting, a Sugarhouse spokeswoman pointed out that there will be an increase in employment for the area, with the casinos expecting to add 1,100 jobs to the Philadelphia areas, according to the Inquirer.

New Kensington group president Richard Levins told the paper that the talks are deemed as “productive,” pointing out that the casino would help with providing citizens with jobs and creating special events to help them do so.

While much progress was made at the meeting, there are still many problems being brought forth every day. Rising gun violence in the area is a concern of citizens in the area, seeing their presence as the spark for even more increase in violence.

“We’re just going to do everything that we possibly can to delay it and possibly stop it,” said JoAnn Sherman, a Fishtown resident who would live a few feet from the proposed casino.

Protests are not likely to be ending soon, despite efforts on the part of the city and casino owners to work with the protesters.

Meetings are scheduled over the next few weeks to further discuss the issue. However, Sugarhouse representatives appear optimistic on the outcome.

“We don’t see them [the protesters] as a threat to the business operations,” said Maureen Garrity, a spokeswoman for Sugarhouse. “It’s not a question of if [it opens], it’s a question of when.”

donovane1@lasalle.edu