Court rejects bid to block SugarHouse permit

The Pennsylvania Supreme Court yesterday rejected an appeal by six state lawmakers from Philadelphia and the entire City Council to stop the city from issuing a permit to SugarHouse Casino to build on submerged land along the banks of the Delaware River in the Fishtown and Northern Liberties neighborhoods.

In the final weeks of the administration of Mayor John F. Street, Commerce Director Stephanie Naidoff had issued a permit giving SugarHouse so-called riparian rights.

The lawmakers, led by former State Sen. Vincent J. Fumo and City Councilman Frank DiCicco, argued that Naidoff exceeded her authority. They said only the state's General Assembly had the right to grant riparian rights.

But the court ruled there was no "interference with or diminution" in the authority of the General Assembly. Chief Justice Ronald Castille wrote that the lawmakers' claim was "only a generalized grievance about the conduct of government that all citizens share." - Jennifer Lin