HARRISBURG: The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board today announced the schedule of suitability hearings for three applicants vying for up to two available Category 3 licenses that would permit the operation of up to 500 slot machines at a resort hotel.

All hearings will be held at the Pennsylvania State Museum located at the corner of Third and North Streets in Harrisburg.

• October 22, 2008 -- 3:00 p.m.
  Valley Forge Convention Center Partners, L.P.
  The Valley Forge Convention Center has 488 hotel rooms on 850,000 square feet of property and is located at 1160 First Avenue in King of Prussia, Montgomery County. 
• October 23, 2008 -- 1:30 p.m.
  Vacation Charters, Ltd., (The Resort at Split Rock)
  The Resort at Split Rock, which offers 557 rooms varying from standard hotel rooms to cottages and suites, is located at One Lake Drive in Lake Harmony, Carbon County.
• October 23, 2008 -- 3:30 p.m.
  Bushkill Group, Inc. (Fernwood Hotel & Resort)
  Fernwood Hotel & Resort and The Villas at Tree Tops and Fairway is a 440 acre hotel resort located on Route 209 in Bushkill, Monroe County.   

The suitability hearings for the Category 3 applicants will provide the Board with an opportunity to hear directly from the applicants on both their suitability to gain licensure and why their project is better than the other applicants.  In turn, the Board will question applicants about their character, operational and financial suitability, community impact, diversity plans, plans for the prevention of compulsive gaming and other issues.

The Board previously conducted eligibility hearings for these applicants on October 16 - 17, 2007 in Harrisburg and public input hearings on April 30, May 1 and May 20, 2008 within the municipality in which each applicant plans to locate the gaming facility.

The Pennsylvania Race Horse Development and Gaming Act permits the Board to award up to two licenses to a well-established resort hotel in order to create an additional patron amenity.   Properties located in Pennsylvania that could qualify for a Category 3 license must be well-established resort hotels with no fewer than 275 guest rooms under common ownership, not located within 15 linear miles of any other licensed slot machine casino, and already offering substantial year-round recreational guest amenities on their premises.