Harrah's Philadelphia Casino & Racetrack is a harness racing track and casino (a racino) on the Chester, Pennsylvania waterfront. It is owned by Vici Properties and operated by Caesars Entertainment.
| Harrah's Philadelphia Casino & Racetrack | |
|---|---|
 | |
 Front entrance of Harrah's Philadelphia | |
  Harrah's Philadelphia Casino & Racetrack in Pennsylvania  Harrah's Philadelphia Casino & Racetrack (the United States) | |
| Location | Chester, Pennsylvania, U.S. |
| Address | 777 Harrah's Blvd |
| Opening date | January 22, 2007 |
| Theme | Racetrack River Carnival |
| Total gaming space | 106,100 sq ft (9,860 m2) |
| Casino type | Racino |
| Owner | Vici Properties |
| Operating license holder | Caesars Entertainment |
| Architect | SOSH Architects |
| Previous names | Chester Downs (while in planning) Harrah's Chester (2007-2012) |
| Coordinates | 39°51′00″N 75°20′51″W / 39.849873°N 75.347618°W |
| Website | HarrahsPhilly.com |
History
editThe track was built on the site of the former Sun Shipbuilding campus. Its first harness racing season opened on September 10, 2006.
On September 27, 2006, the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board gave Harrah's Chester its slots license.[1] The Board approved Harrah's application for the permanent slot-machine gaming operator license on December 20, 2006.[2] The casino opened on January 22, 2007, one day earlier than anticipated.[3] Catania Engineering Associates performed the site design for this project.[citation needed]
The casino began offering live table games on July 18, 2010.[4]
In May 2012, Harrah's Chester changed its name to Harrah's Philadelphia to appeal to a broader market.[5]
In 2018, Vici Properties, a real estate company that had earlier been spun off from Caesars, purchased the land and buildings of Harrah's Philadelphia from Caesars for $242 million. Caesars leased back the property for $21 million per year.[6]
On January 22, 2019, sports betting began at Harrah's Philadelphia with a testing period; a formal grand opening occurred on January 24, 2019. Sports betting takes place at Caesars Sportsbook, a 4,322-square-foot (401.5 m2) sportsbook with an odds board, 6 teller windows, self-betting kiosks, and 2 terminals for betting on horse races. The sportsbook has 19 lounge seats, 11 high-top tables, bar seating, and over 45 big-screen TVs. Sports betting is available on multiple sports including football, basketball, baseball, hockey, soccer, and college sports.[7][8]
Amenities
editThe casino consists of over 2,000 slot machines, 100,000 square feet (9,300 m2) of gaming space, a 14,000-square-foot (1,300 m2) event center, and numerous drineries, eateries, meeting rooms, and retail establishments.
Bars
edit- C-Bar
- Copper Mug
- Harrah's Backyard
- O'Shea's
Meeting rooms
edit- Caesars
- Harrah's
- Horseshoe
Restaurants
edit- Market Express
- Mien
- Philly Tap and Tavern
- The Market
Shopping
edit- Gift Shop
Harness racing
editHarrah's Philadelphia currently runs a 150 day live meet that runs from early April to mid-December. Race days are typically operated on Sunday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday, as well as occasional holidays that fall on Saturday and Monday. Racing at Harrah's is usually scheduled to begin at 12:25PM.[9] The racing broadcast is available for wagering via simulcast from other racetracks throughout the United States and Canada.
The track is 5⁄8 mile (1.0 km) in length and has a limestone-based surface. The midpoint of 1-mile (1.6 km) races comes on a bridge that hangs over the Delaware River and provides a view of freight ships passing by. Although the track is equipped with lights, it has not operated a schedule with regular night racing since 2011.
The racing paddock at Harrah's holds up to 131 horses. Because of limited space, horses are shipped in to the paddock rather than stabled on-track.
Harrah's Philadelphia was the host site of PA Harness Week, a weekly show aired on Philadelphia's local Comcast SportsNet channel. It aired its final episode on August 29, 2015.[10] The show was drawing roughly 3,500 viewers per week at the time of its cancellation.[11]
Track announcers
edit- Multiple (2006)
- James Witherite (2007–2013)[12]
- Michael Bozich (2014–present)[13]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ Bohlin, Liam. "Pa approves conditional slots licenses". Top Casino Games. Liam Bohlin. Archived from the original on 20 June 2016. Retrieved 6 June 2016.
- ^ Bohlin, Liam. "Pa approves permanent gaming operator licenses". Top Casino Games. Liam Bohlin. Archived from the original on 20 June 2016. Retrieved 6 June 2016.
- ^ [dead link]http://www.delcotimes.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=17737692&BRD=1675&PAG=461&dept_id=18171&rfi=6{{Dead link|date=September 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}
- ^ Parmley, Suzette (July 18, 2010). "Table games debut at Parx, Harrah's Chester". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved January 8, 2019.
- ^ Parmley, Suzette (12 May 2012). "New name, broader reach for Harrah's Chester". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved 2012-05-12.
- ^ "Vici Properties Inc. completes acquisition of Harrah's Philadelphia and lease modifications" (Press release). Vici Properties. December 26, 2018. Retrieved 2018-12-29.
- ^ Rose, Alex (January 19, 2019). "Harrah's ready to take plunge into sports betting Tuesday". Delaware County Daily Times. Archived from the original on January 21, 2019. Retrieved January 20, 2019.
- ^ Tustin, Kevin (January 25, 2019). "Bet on it! Harrah's cleared for sports wagering in Chester". Delaware County Daily Times. Archived from the original on January 26, 2019. Retrieved January 25, 2019.
- ^ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2017-02-02. Retrieved 2016-08-03.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ "Harness Week". Archived from the original on 2016-03-06. Retrieved 2016-08-03.
- ^ "High Costs and Low Ratings Led to Cancellation of PA Harness Week". 2 October 2015.
- ^ "Harrah's Chester names announcer, racing analyst". Archived from the original on August 22, 2016.
- ^ "Harrah's names Mike Bozich as race announcer :: Harnesslink". Archived from the original on 2016-09-15.