Penn National gambles on Atlantic City site

"Dominating the scene are billboards pitching everything from insurance to beer to jewelry to a real estate service that promises to 'Sell Your House Fast.' Then there are the bottles, cans and clumps of litter carelessly tossed from cars that travel the busy highway.

"…Clayton's Self Storage and the land are part of a 23-acre parcel under option to Penn National Gaming Inc., the nation's third-largest casino company. Penn National, a company that has long wanted to enter Atlantic City's nearly $5 billion gaming market, is taking a gamble that the site will be rezoned by the city for casino development.

"…Acknowledging that the land is fraught with potential problems, the company nonetheless is pushing ahead with an analysis to see if this could be the site of a 'Borgata-like' casino. Penn National officials note that the Las Vegas-like Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa was built on a former landfill in the Marina District, so it's not too far-fetched to think that their casino could rise from Route 30's scrappy site.

"…City planning officials have recommended the Penn National site for a casino, giving the company hope that it can overcome potential problems with environmentally sensitive wetlands and possible contamination left over from the property's former use as an oil depot…"

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