Keep digging, boys!

Another victory for Majestic Star casino owner Don Barden, who can begin building on the North Shore:

"The city planning commission [approved] design plans for his $450 million North Shore casino and a controversial parking garage to be built behind it. In doing so, the commission turned aside objections from the Riverlife Task Force and others in the local design community who feared the garage could overwhelm the sleek glass and steel riverfront Majestic Star casino and mar views of the city's skyline."

Construction on the site began last month, but that doesn't mean the casino's garage has a true green light:

"The battle may not be over for Mr. Barden, who also has fought -- and reached agreements -- with the Steelers and Pirates over the casino's impact on traffic and the Carnegie Science Center over site improvements. Clifford Levine, an attorney for the Riverlife Task Force, said the agency is considering its options in terms of a possible appeal. It objected to yesterday's hearing on procedural grounds, saying it should have the right to present evidence and witnesses, a position rejected by the commission. Mr. Levine argued in his presentation that accessory structures, such as garages, are limited to 20 feet in height under city zoning laws without a variance from the city's Zoning Board of Adjustment."

... that decorative screening looks really pretty, by the way.

... Good news for Don Barden: Pennsylvania's slots, despite predictions from social conservatives and know-it-all media types that nobody would want to play slots here when they could get full table games elsewhere, are among the most lucrative on the East Coast (which now apparently includes the Allegheny plateau and middle Appalachia). Check it aht:

"Pennsylvania casinos held four of the top five spots on the East Coast for money grossed per slot machine in fall 2007. [The] Mohegan Sun at Pocono Downs generated $403 per slot machine per day between Sept. 1 and Nov. 30, 2007, more than any other East Coast casino. The Mohegan Sun in Connecticut came in second at $390 per machine, followed by three Pennsylvania casinos: Philadelphia Park at $369 per machine, The Meadows at $347 per machine and Harrah's Chester at $322 per machine."

Not horsin' around

Gov. Ed Rendell wants to merge the state's thoroughbred and harness racing agencies into one group, on the logic that ... well, we'll let him explain it:

"In the past, there sometimes hasn't been as much cooperation between harness and thoroughbred officials as there should be ... Officials think they can get better cooperation out of the two staffs if a single person directs both staffs." They'll be conducting a nationwide search for that special, multi-talented person.

If that doesn't scream Pennsylvania -- two separate horseracing agencies that just can't seem to cooperate -- I don't know what does.

De Scandal in De Poconos

The Louis DeNaples grand jury saga continues:

"The recently resigned top federal prosecutor in central and northeastern Pennsylvania is working for a casino owner who is under investigation for alleged ties to organized crime. Former U.S. Attorney Thomas Marino [said] that his work will be limited to other businesses owned by Louis A. DeNaples, and will not involve Mount Airy Casino Resort or defending DeNaples in the ongoing grand jury investigation."

That sounds reasonable.

... This bit of news comes after the Patriot-News revealed that the priest who got tied up in the grand jury mess also got tied up in a bit of debt:

"Most priests take a vow of poverty, but bankruptcy records show that the Rev. Joseph F. Sica, a Scranton-area priest, took out enough loans to live large if he wanted to. On an annual salary of $13,200, Sica amassed debts totaling more than $218,000. Most of that debt was owed to First Community National Bank, whose chairman is Sica's longtime friend Louis DeNaples. DeNaples, a casino owner, is the subject of an ongoing Dauphin County grand jury investigation. Sica was arrested on a perjury charge that accuses him of lying to that same grand jury."

Odds and ends

The AP reports on the continuing "woes" at Atlantic City's casinos, caused by an encroaching Pennsylvania ... The DeNaples grand jury probe is a sordid affair, says the Morning Call editorial board ... Political gadfly Gene Stilp tangles with columnist John Baer and the state Supreme Court ... Harrah's Entertainment is allowed to transfer ownership of its Pennsylvania casino ... And in case you're doing any traveling, Israel is going to open a casino along the Red Sea.

Do you think Moses can turn a junk hand into a straight flush?