The new casinos include two stand-alone facilities, Sands Bethworks in Bethlehem and Majestic Star Casino in Pittsburgh; and upgrades from temporary to permanent facilities at two racetracks, the Meadows Racetrack and Casino in Washington and Mohegan Sun at Pocono Downs. A board spokesman tells GlobeSt.com, the numbers are based on figures the applicants submitted in applying for their licenses.

In total, the 11 licensed casinos slated to be open as of July '09 are scheduled to have a combined 24,123 slot machines, according to a release. Based on gross terminal revenues of $2.28 billion, the commonwealth would collect $1.23 billion in taxes annually, the largest portion of that going toward property tax relief, according to the release. Commonwealth law allows the operation of up to 62,000 slot machines in Pennsylvania, the spokesman says, adding, "currently we have 15,000 slot machines, so we're nowhere near that number."

According to a news release, Hayes told the board, "within the next 15 months, the Commonwealth will see an expansion of gaming which nearly parallels what we saw in the combined years of 2006 and 2007. "In particular, the tremendous scope and size of two new projects, Sands Bethworks and Majestic Star, will drive this significant increase."

SugarHouse

Earlier this month, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court cleared the way for Foxwoods to proceed, ordering the City of Philadelphia to provide the necessary zoning changes, according to published reports. The court battles over SugarHouse have gone on for several months and aren't over yet.