SugarHouse drops lawsuit holding up South Philly casino

Philadelphia’s long-delayed second casino is now clear to land after the city’s original casino operator dropped a lawsuit blocking the project.

On Wednesday, the Associated Press reported that the owners of Philadelphia’s SugarHouse Casino had dropped their lawsuit that had been blocking construction of Live! Hotel & Casino Philadelphia, the Stadium Casino LLP project that was awarded the state’s 13th casino license nearly three years ago.

Stadium Casino LLP is a joint venture involving the Maryland-based Cordish Companies and Greenwood Gaming & Entertainment, which operates Pennsylvania’s market-leading Parx Casino in Bucks County.

Trouble is, Parx is majority owned by Watche Manoukian, and Pennsylvania law doesn’t permit majority casino owners to hold more than a one-third stake in a different gaming venue. SugarHouse seized on this issue and its legal challenges to the legitimacy of the casino license have blocked Stadium Casino LLP from putting shovels to dirt.