The ongoing saga concerning the planned Bally’s Casino in State College seems to be coming to a conclusion. The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board (PGCB) finally awarded a Category 4 slot machine license during the Jan. 25 meeting to SC Gaming OpCo, LLC, who plans to open the Pennsylvania casino.
SC Gaming’s owner, Ira Lubert, provided an application that included plans to open the State College casino in a 94,000-square-foot space that used to house a Macy’s department store at Nittany Mall.
Let’s take a look at what bettors should expect to find at the latest PA mini-casino.
Bally’s Nittany Mall Casino will include slots, table games and more
During the final licensing hearing, representatives of SC Gaming OpCo presented plans for the $127.6 million development of the Nittany Mall Casino. A Category 4 license is primarily for slot machines, though the plans include much more.
The license allows the holder to “petition for permission to operate up to 30 table games for an additional fee of $2.5 million with the capability of adding an additional 10 tables games after its first year of operation,” according to a PGCB press release.
Indeed, SC Gaming plans to offer table games from the get-go. The presentation showed that the new Bally’s Casino will include the following:
- 750 slot machines
- 30 table games
- A retail sportsbook
- A sports bar and restaurant with stage for live music
- Quick serve food and beverage outlets
The new casino won’t open this year. Once begun, SC Gaming estimates construction to take about 12 months to complete.
State College Casino moving ahead despite challenges
The PCGB has not walked back its initial decision to award the license to Lubert. But competitor Cordish Gaming filed a legal petition in Commonwealth Court, under the business name Stadium Gaming, seeking to overturn the license. The court will eventually rule on the petition, but the PGCB and SC Gaming are moving forward.
The licensing process began over two years ago when Lubert won a Category 4 auction that gave him the right to apply for the license.
The challenge by Cordish Gaming claimed that Lubert’s bid was partially funded by persons or entities who are not eligible to bid on the license. Cordish was the second-highest bidder in the license auction, and currently owns Live! Casino Philadelphia.
Lead image c/o SC Gaming