A Letter To Penn National Gaming re: Hollywood Casino Columbus

June 4, 2011 Update: I received a response from Penn National! I’ve copied it below the original letter.

So this ridiculous Columbus Casino situation struck a chord with me and inspired me a write a letter to the owners of the Hollywood Casino. With all of the negative print re: Casinos, Gambling, Poker, etc, I hope to add something constructive and positive to what is really a messed up situation.

from	Nicholas J Nicastro nick@nicknicastro.com
to		corporate@pngaming.com
date		Thu, May 26, 2011 at 9:26 AM
subject		Hollywood Columbus

Dear Penn National:

I am a Columbus resident, a semi-professional poker player and someone who likes to use logic and common sense. Watching what has happened in Columbus re: Casino has made me sick. I am sorry that Ohio is still giving you so much trouble, even after (somewhat) shedding their mundane, anti-capitalistic views on casinos. I think that a little piece of me dies every time I hear a commercial for the Ohio Lottery, a game of pure luck where the odds of winning are astronomical in comparison to most casino games. Political hypocrisy knows no bounds. Don’t even get me started on the Federal views of Poker, a proven skill game.

I hope that things turn around for you and that the new Casino site works out as well. As a homeowner downtown, I am appalled that the bureaucrats in Columbus forced your hand in moving the site away from the central business district and into a rather sketchy part of town. I could only think of one better place for your casino than the Arena district site you had planned: The City Center. As the owner of CityCenterHotelCasino.com, I have long envisioned that land as the perfect addition to what is a stagnant downtown area. Instead, the people in charge decided to build a park. Another park. In a city that has more parks than it needs, I am literally blown away that they took such valuable land and wasted it. Don’t get me wrong, I love green space… but this wasn’t the place for it.

Here’s to hoping the City stops messing with you so I’ll be able to play poker in my own town. Unfortunately, I will most likely end up moving out of Columbus and out of Ohio, as the conservative views here do nothing but limit me as a person and as a businessman. Why a person cannot do what they please (so long as they are not harming anything) in their 4 walls blows my mind… but that’s a whole other topic 🙂

Best Regards,

Nicholas J Nicastro

Penn National’s reply 5/27/11

Thank you very much for your email, and for your support!

Best,

Eric Schippers