Greenwood Gaming considering new mini-casino location

Greenwood Racing has proposed a new location for its mini-casino. The owner of the Parx Casino in Pennsylvania has been searching for a new area after having issues with its first choice in the Shippensburg Township. A former Lowe’s Home Improvement store would make things easy for the operator, providing an existing building that could be used to create a mini-casino.

The operator recently sent a filing to the state’s Gaming Control Board and the municipality for consideration. The company ran into several issues involving its first location site, a vacant lot on Cramer road. Sinkholes as well as traffic concerns played a role in the need for a new location.

Details of the Decision

It seems that Greenwood Gaming had no choice but to find a new spot for its mini-casino. Traffic issues may have required the company to spend millions of dollars to create a new overpass at I-81. The project was reviewed from the time the land was chosen and was delayed due to the many issues the developer came across.

Just a few days ago, the Parx Casino operator, settled a resolution regarding a dispute related to the traffic impact study connected to the project that was required by the state’s Department of Transportation. Along with the traffic issues, the COVID-19 pandemic played a role in delaying any plans to start the project.

Moving Locations

Greenwood now has to go through a hearing process to move the location of the satellite casino to another area in Shippensburg. Gaming Control Board spokesman Doug Harbach stated that a public hearing will be scheduled for input regarding the license application of the company and its new location.

Everyone in the community will have the opportunity to provide thoughts on the subject, including if the new location will serve the community well. Greenwood won an auction way back in February 2018 for the project at $8.1 million. While they were approved originally, they must go through the process again since they are moving the project from one location to another.

A hearing is scheduled for the early morning on April 3, with the Board of Supervisors in the Township. A conditional use application was filed by Greenwood Gaming on March 5. It says the company will use the former Lowe’s location to provide 600 gaming seats along with a restaurant/sports bar with 250 seats.

If the project can become a reality, it would provide a percentage of its yearly gross gambling revenues to the township. As much as $500,000 to $600,000 could be provided. The project will also bring up to 175 construction jobs as the facility is renovated to create a casino.