SugarHouse plans a $550-million casino project on 22 acres at N. Delaware Avenue and Shackamoxon Street along the Delaware River. Foxwoods' $560-million casino complex is to be located further south on a 16.5-acre parcel along the riverfront at Columbus Boulevard and Tasker Street. The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board granted licenses for the two Philadelphia stand-alone casinos to these projects in December 2006. In his letter, Rendell reiterates the position he previously told members of the alliance, which is "the commonwealth has no authority to require them to accept alternative sites."

However, the alliance, which is a coalition of 24 community groups, vows to fight on. A bill has been introduced in the state legislature that would require a 1,500-foot buffer between casinos and residences. The alliance, as GlobeSt.com previously reported, has been waging a battle against the two selected sites since they were announced.

Matt Rubin, an alliance delegate from the Northern Liberties neighborhood, which is near the SugarHouse site, says in a statement, "the governor certainly has the power to intervene on our behalf. He could state his public support for HB 1477 [the bill], for one." Rubin charges, "the legitimate concerns of residents have been willfully ignored. …We will not sit idly by and watch our communities be destroyed."