Pocono first to have slots

With two successful test runs under its belt, the video lottery parlor at Mohegan Sun at Pocono Downs will open on Tuesday, with the Friday and Sunday sessions—by invitation only—reportedly bringing in a total of $95,049, of which $32,317 (34 percent) went to property-tax relief as required by law.

The site will be the first in Pennsylvania to open its slots parlor, with the $70 million facility including nearly 1,110 machines on two floors, with a food court with three restaurants.

"I think everybody is a little nervous but also very excited," Mogen Sun’s CEO Robert Soper was quoted as saying. "It was never our goal—and frankly it was never that important to us—to open first, but certainly we are going to celebrate the fact."

A second phase at Pocono Downs will nearly double the number of slot machines, and will also add other amenities including retail shops and a nightclub. Annual revenues of more than $167 million have been projected for the site once it is fully operational.

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