At a College Township meeting last month, officials voted to approve negotiations with a research firm on an impact study for a proposed casino at the site of the Nittany Mall. However, finding sufficiently impartial organization to conduct the study may be challenging.
The township agreed to negotiate with Convergence Strategy Group on an impact study for a Category 4 “mini casino” that would be able to offer up to 750 slots and 40 table games. The township has a $100,000 budget to conduct the study. Final agreement on a contract would need approval from the township council.
Multiple vendors taking into consideration
Officials identified Convergence because it has “multiple decades of experience working in the casino and gaming industry,” according to Assistant Township Manager Mike Bloom during a recent township meeting. Concerns had been raised at previous town halls and meetings that an impact study should be completed by an impartial body.
Council member Eric Bernier mentioned Spectrum Gaming Group as another potential vendor about which impartiality concerns had been raised during public commentary. That consultancy organization is often hired for impact studies for online casinos, but its client list also includes the same companies whose impacts it’s often brought in to assess.
Such relationships and real-or-perceived conflicts of interest are a persistent problem when it comes to predicting the potential impact of casinos. The entities with the most expertise are often those that also have skin in the game one way or another.
Andrew Shaffer, a resident of the area, isn’t convinced that Convergence can be unbiased. During a recent township meeting, he expressed:
“[Convergence is] very, very well-known advocates for the gambling industry. That is their experience. That is their bread and butter.”
According to Shaffer, Convergence has a business relationship with Saratoga Casino Holdings, which hopes to have ownership stake in the Nittany Mall casino property, which is less than five miles from the campus of Pennsylvania State University. Despite being classified as a “mini casino” under Pennsylvania gaming regulations, a casino at Nittany Mall could still be quite expansive: 100,000 square feet and large enough to house as many as 750 slot machines under Class 4 casino status.
Nittany Mall Casino slowly becoming a reality?
The development of a casino at the Nittany Mall in College Township, in State College, near Penn State, and on a large former retail space occupied by a Macy’s store, has been a contentious and winding affair.
As long ago as 2020, bids were submitted to build a casino in the mall. At the time, Bally’s Corporation was attached to the development along with SC Gaming, but following years of wrangling over how the bid was won, Bally’s pulled out. Some citizens have also shared opposition to a casino being built in the community. SC Gaming, which still maintains the rights to a Class 4 casino license for the location, plans to forge ahead with the project.
