Casino to build arena for Pens

Isle of Capri Casinos will pay $290 million if it gets a license in the city.
PITTSBURGH (AP) -- Eighteen state, county and city lawmakers on Wednesday endorsed a plan in which a casino company would build a new hockey arena for the Pittsburgh Penguins.
Isle of Capri Casinos, Inc. would pay $290 million for the arena if the gambling company gets a license to operate a slot machine parlor in Pittsburgh, the team announced last month.
The Biloxi, Miss.-based company has joined with Nationwide Realty Investors, a key player in the Columbus Blue Jackets' arena and surrounding development projects, on a $1 billion plan that would also include the construction of new housing and retail space.
State officials endorse play
Pittsburgh-area state Sens. Jim Ferlo and Jay Costa, both Democrats, and Republicans Jane Orie and John Pippy joined nine state representatives and five members of the city and Allegheny County councils in endorsing the plan.
"We need jobs and income in the city of Pittsburgh, and when I look at the various projects that are out there ... this proposal clearly generates the largest amount of jobs," said Ferlo, who described the proposal as "an economic development no-brainer."
The Isle of Capri plan, unlike others, would help revitalize Pittsburgh's downtown area by creating revenue for the city, which is "struggling with its daily operating budget," he said at a news conference.
The lawmakers hope their united show of support will push the state's Gaming Control Board to award Isle of Capri a slots license later this year.
Three others made bids
Three other groups, including one backed by Harrah's Entertainment Inc., have made bids for the slots-parlor license that will be given to Pittsburgh. The other applicants have said they might offer some arena funding, but none has offered to build the entire facility without using tax money, as Isle of Capri has.
Penguins player and owner Mario Lemieux has warned that he might move the team if a new arena deal is not reached by the end of the 2006-2007 NHL season. The Penguins have played at the 45-year-old Mellon Arena since they began as an expansion team in 1967.
The proposed arena would have a seating capacity of 18,500, exceeding the Mellon Arena's capacity of about 17,000 seats. Architectural sketches at Wednesday's news conference envision a glass-enclosed entrance, a casino decorated with palm trees and revamped streets nearby.
The team is worth more than $100 million to Pittsburgh's economy, said City Council President Luke Ravenstahl, citing a recent Carnegie Mellon University study.
"If we lose that, that is money directly out of our city coffers and our city budget, and as we all know and as is well documented, we certainly can't afford to lose something of that magnitude," he said, adding that there was insufficient taxpayer money to fund the new arena.
To tour Blue Jackets arena
Ravenstahl and other officials were traveling to Columbus to tour the Blue Jackets' arena and nearby development projects, considering them an example of what might be achieved in Pittsburgh.
Jim Motznik, a city councilman, said officials previously had been unable to find a private developer to take on the job of building a new arena.
"The Penguins have been successful in finding someone to make an investment, which is new when we talk about building arenas," he said. "It is the perfect storm and we have to take advantage of it."
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