The bond would be for about $58 million, because the agreement gives Hollywood Casino two years before having to start paying for the debt.

“And again, the city and taxpayer will not be out of pocket,” Dibo said. With a tax increment financing district on that property, it could be used to pay the debt service on the bonds incurred by the city.ĭavid Dibo, director of the Mayor’s Office of Economic Development, said servicing the loan from the money created in the TIF district means “the city itself will not pay for the bonds out of pocket.”Īccording to the agreement, if the TIF district fails to raise the money expected to pay for bond service, Hollywood Casino would make up the difference, thus paying for the repayment of the bonds. It also would relinquish any leases it has on the two casino parking lots downtown and the office space in them to make those buildings city-controlled.Ĭity officials said the current empty lots along Farnsworth generate about $150,000 a year in property taxes, but that could increase to about $5 million when the casino is built.

Penn Entertainment would not only spend more than $300 million to build the new casino, but it would agree to demolish the existing casino building downtown and transfer the pad it was built on to the city.