Philly Slot Machine Opponents Filing Petition

The group Casino Free Philadelphia is submitting a petition that has more than 20,000 signatures on it asking the City Council to ban slot machines within the city. They are asking that all slot machines and casinos be located on the outskirts of Philadelphia, and not right in front of them. They are concerned with the traffic and safety issues that will follow the bringing in of slot machines and casinos.

They also want the council to assist them in getting an order on the May primary ballot asking voters to ban all slot machines and casinos to the outskirts of town, in so that they cannot be located within 1,500 feet of schools, playgrounds, parks, libraries, homes, houses of worship, and civic centers.

If the group is successful it could throw a real wrench into the state’s plan to put two slot machine casinos in Philadelphia along the waterfront. The council says they do not know what to do about the measure yet, and that few of them have said they will vote in favor of it. However, the group who opposes the slot machines knows that the city council members are up for reelection after the primary, so it would be in their best interest to vote for the measure if they want to keep their jobs.

The group was trying to get 40,000 votes by last night, but they will probably not make that goal, with the number coming in at more than 25,000.

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