Farewell. The Flying Pig Has Left The Building.

Steve Hynd, August 16, 2012

After four years on the Typepad site, eight years total blogging, Newshoggers is closing it's doors today. We've been coasting the last year or so, with many of us moving on to bigger projects (Hey, Eric!) or simply running out of blogging enthusiasm, and it's time to give the old flying pig a rest.

We've done okay over those eight years, although never being quite PC enough to gain wider acceptance from the partisan "party right or wrong" crowds. We like to think we moved political conversations a little, on the ever-present wish to rush to war with Iran, on the need for a real Left that isn't licking corporatist Dem boots every cycle, on America's foreign misadventures in Afghanistan and Iraq. We like to think we made a small difference while writing under that flying pig banner. We did pretty good for a bunch with no ties to big-party apparatuses or think tanks.

Those eight years of blogging will still exist. Because we're ending this typepad account, we've been archiving the typepad blog here. And the original blogger archive is still here. There will still be new content from the old 'hoggers crew too. Ron writes for The Moderate Voice, I post at The Agonist and Eric Martin's lucid foreign policy thoughts can be read at Democracy Arsenal.

I'd like to thank all our regular commenters, readers and the other bloggers who regularly linked to our posts over the years to agree or disagree. You all made writing for 'hoggers an amazingly fun and stimulating experience.

Thank you very much.

Note: This is an archive copy of Newshoggers. Most of the pictures are gone but the words are all here. There may be some occasional new content, John may do some posts and Ron will cross post some of his contributions to The Moderate Voice so check back.


----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Wednesday, October 7, 2009

Casino Cashflow stabilizes

By David Anderson:


As I noted last week, the Rivers Casino revenue should have reverted back to the non-G-20 trend this week.  That trend would predict revenue of around $160 to $170 per machine per day.  This week's revenue per machine per day was $162.  This is less than half the casino's own public projections, and slightly more than half the state and credit rating agency projections. 


At this point, revenue would have to increase and maintain $330 per day per machine to meet the state's projection.  An average take of $380 per machine per day would be needed to meet the casino's projection for revenue between Aug. 3 2009 to Aug 3 2010.  For some odd reason, I think those numbers are unlikely to be met. 


The Tribune Review reports that the Rivers Casino is seeking flexibility on making payments to the Sports and Exhibition Authority.  Rep. Jake Wheatley (D-Pittsburgh's Hill District) first wanted to deny the Gaming Control Board the authority to strip the Rivers operating license if they did not pay the arena fee on time.  This is a $7.5 million dollar annual payment to the bond sinking fund for the Penguins' arena that was one of the conditions of the license.  That proposal was defeated.  The new proposal is to extend the payment date for the first payment to Jan. 1, 2010, an implied subsidy of $100,000 or more. 


We will start to see more games like this be played for the Rivers if revenue continues to be less than half the casino's projections.  The Rivers' construction bond payment for next year will eat up $122 million dollars in gross terminal revenue.  After that, the construction bond will consume $167 million in gross terminal revenue.  The Arena bond is a committment of another $16.7 million dollars in gross terminal revenue.  These two debt obligations will consume at least half of the gross terminal revenue under my own private optimistic revenue projections, and could consume almost two thirds of all revenue under my private pessimistic projections.  That means there is very little money left over to actually pay people to work or to keep the lights on.  The Rivers will be begging for another hand-out soon is my bet. 



Posted by at
Labels:

2 comments:

  1. KevinOctober 7, 2009 at 4:20 AM

    Thanks for all your reporting.
    I think govt supported gambling is a bad thing. I think the Lotto is a pernicious influence on politics.
    We should allow casinos and gambling through zoning rules, and tax them as "non-essential businesses," at a higher corporate rate.
    grocery stores, hardware, dry cleaning, car repair etc... pay one tax rate.
    casinos, race tracks, strip joints, movies, maybe bars etc. get taxed at a higher rate.
    maybe add other rates for business that pollute.
    In no case should the govt float bonds for casinos.

    ReplyDelete
  2. dave andersonOctober 7, 2009 at 5:02 AM

    Kevin --- the state of PA did not float any bonds for the casino in question. Pennsylvania is backing a bond issue for a new hockey arena in Pittsburgh. The casino is supposed to pay ~40% of the annual debt service on the arena bond issue.
    The Casino has construction bonds that it is paying for out of its share of the gross terminal revenue (revenue-payout for winners) as well as its portion of the hockey arena as well as normal operating costs. I think that sum will be much greater than revenue by the end of next summer.

    ReplyDelete

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)