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busdriver · Journeyman Joined: 16 Mar 2009 Posts: 3497

Tanger across the street, no taxes for 20 years, is it?

The casino is a vision
where cash will always flow;
The tax collector gets a "tingle",
thinking of all that "dough".

The excitement of "bucks" has the "spittle' salavating,
on the corners of the "pols"mouth as they lie in waiting;

Casino appeals $19.9M tax assessment

As Washington County and local officials expected, attorneys for The Meadows Casino have appealed its $19.9 million tax assessment.
The 2010 assessment - the highest in Washington County - is specifically for the casino and parking garage at 210 Racetrack Road, North Strabane Township.

David LaTorre, spokesman for The Meadows Casino, in a prepared statement, said, "This is the first time the current owners are going through the assessment process with the newly built permanent casino.

"There really isn't a past precedent for a facility like this.

"Moving forward, we simply want to make sure the assessment is accurate because it will be used as a base point for future assessments on the property."
Filing the appeal this week was Ladbroke Racing Pennsylvania Inc., now known because of change of name as CCR Pennsylvania Racing Inc.

The lead attorney for the casino, Raymond Hoehler of Pittsburgh, said in the appeal that the real estate tax assessment is "excessive, improper, unjust and contrary to law."

The county assessment appeals board held a hearing in mid-October, but no one from The Meadows appeared. Chairman Robert Lusk and members John C. Rheel and Bill West decided there would be no change in the real estate tax assessment, which is scheduled to take effect in January.

The casino owner, Cannery Casino and Resorts, filed an appeal of its assessment with the Washington County Board of Assessment Appeals. CCR said the construction cost of the building was $134 million in today's dollars, and claims the 1981 market value would be $40 million, which would mean an assessment of $10 million. That is about half of the present assessment.

"The Meadows got a notice," said Debbie Bardella, director of the Washington County tax revenue department, which includes the tax assessment office. "Someone else did not get a notice.

"I'm sure it was a mixup with that. They would've appealed that anyway."

Bardella had not yet received a copy of the appeal filed this week in Washington County Court.

Both sides will provide the court with appraisals, but the tax assessment office is waiting to receive its copy of the appeal before hiring a firm to do an appraisal. While The Meadows, which opened its permanent facility in April, is the only casino in Washington County, an appraiser can go outside the county to find a comparable property to try to bolster its case.

In addition to the county, the assessment appeal affects both North Strabane Township and Canon-McMillan School District.

North Strabane, as the host municipality for the casino, also receives a yearly percentage of the revenue from its operations. The 2009 allocation was $2.2 million. In addition, a local share of casino revenue is used to fund projects for municipalities around the county. This year, about $11 million has been earmarked for distribution.

A court hearing date has not yet been set.

SSSS · Posted: Fri Nov 06, 2009 2:33 pm Post subject:

The state and county governments are going to kill that golden goose. They seem to think only the government gets to make a profit from it. If they keep adding taxes to the casino, it will soon be part of Meadowbrook.
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Brant · Posted: Fri Nov 06, 2009 3:47 pm Post subject:

The Meadows and other casino operators have made it clear to state lawmakers that if the buy-in costs and tax rates on table games are too high, they simply won't put in table games. Do you think our state lawmakers, who already are counting on $200 million from table games to balance the CURRENT budget, are smart enough to heed this warning? Hah.
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The priests of the different religious sects dread the advance of science as witches do the approach of daylight.

- Thomas Jefferson

Professor · Apprentice Joined: 03 Dec 2008 Posts: 358

Regardless of what they are saying the casino operators want those table games and want them bad! I'd call and raise the taxes.
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SSSS · Posted: Fri Nov 06, 2009 8:12 pm Post subject:

Actually professor that is not true. 70-80 percent of any casino's income is slot machines. Table games take a LOT more labor.

Brant-I know our Governor is not smart enough! I think it would be hysterical if they passed a budget that included that money and then none of the casinos bought the license.
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Brant · Posted: Fri Nov 06, 2009 9:49 pm Post subject:

SSSS, I'd also have a good chuckle. Of course, then they'd just bend us over to get the $200 million. It took them 101 days past the deadline to get a budget, and then they cobbled together a plan with smoke and mirrors. It's a sorry collection of people we have representing us in Harrisburg, yet they seem to think they're doing a wonderful job.
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The priests of the different religious sects dread the advance of science as witches do the approach of daylight.

- Thomas Jefferson

SSSS · Posted: Fri Nov 06, 2009 11:26 pm Post subject:

Yes they spend a LOT of time patting each other on the back.
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