An April 19 Sunday News article entitled, “Slots in the city? Don’t bet on it” gave voice to the view held by some observers that the future of the Convention Center may eventually include the introduction of slot machines. Unfortunately, the article, though fairly extensive in its investigation, did not draw statements from the most important voices on the matter. So NewsLanc set out to obtain those statements, once and for all.
After bringing the question to the County Commissioners (drawing an unequivocal “no”), we contacted High Industries and Lancaster Newspapers Inc. (LNP), both members of the Penn Square Partners, for their response to the question of slots. Both inquiries yielded a rather equivocal non-answer: Neither High nor LNP would directly deny the possibility of slot machines being introduced in the Convention Center.
NewsLanc first spoke with Harold Miller, President and CEO of LNP. When posed with the question of whether LNP would ever support the introduction of slots, Miller would not directly answer, simply stating, “There is no basis of fact to anything that you’re saying.” NewsLanc’s reporter then asked if “no basis of fact” can be taken to mean that the possibility of incorporating slot machines has never been on the table. Miller maintained that he would not provide any such statement, insinuating that the question was itself so absurd that it did not merit an answer.
NewsLanc then brought the same question to a representative of High Industries, who also declined to comment. The High representative referred NewsLanc to published statements by Josh Nowak, “representative of Interstate Hotels, the professional management company hired by the integrated facility’s ownership entities.” In the aforementioned Sunday News article, Nowak is quoted as saying, “There will be no slot machines in this integrated facility.”
