Don Barden's fingernails have to be down to their nubs by now. Does he have the financing to build a casino? Doesn't he? The latest:

"The same company involved in the purchase of Harrah's Entertainment, one of the bidders for the Pittsburgh slots license, is lending money to Don Barden, the eventual winner of that license, to build his North Shore casino. Apollo Strategic Value Fund LP, which has committed $150 million toward the slots parlor's financing, is part of Apollo Management, one of two private equity firms that acquired Harrah's for $17.1 billion. In a statement released Monday evening, Mr. Barden said the $150 million from Apollo and a group of other lenders rounded out the permanent financing he needed for the casino."

Harrah's, as you may recall, wanted to operate a casino in Pittsburgh's Station Square, but in December 2006 the state gaming board selected Don Barden over the Harrah's-Forest City Enterprises proposal. So does this mean Harrah's is back in the picture as an operator? Will this be a strict loan, or more of an equity venture? Does this position the Harrah's brand to take over if the Majestic Star brand flops?

"Another analyst, Gregg Klein of BNP Paribas Group, said Apollo simply may view the Pittsburgh casino 'as an investment they're comfortable with' and cautioned against making too much of it. 'It's not as easy as saying if Majestic Star fails, Harrah's takes over,' he said.'

Oh. Well there ya go.

... Don Barden had a tough time arranging financing for the same reason Mr. and Mrs. Homebuyer are having a tougher time arranging a mortgage -- lenders are less likely to take risks these days, and the result is a tightening credit market, says the Associated Press:

"The credit crunch that is delaying some casino plans is nearing an end, even though it still may kill some poorly conceived projects, a panel of Wall Street experts said Tuesday. Speaking at the East Coast Gaming Congress, officials with Wall Street firms said credit is still available, although at a higher price ... In Atlantic City, proposed projects by Pinnacle Entertainment and Revel Entertainment have been affected by credit markets; Pinnacle has said it may abandon its Atlantic City plans if credit markets don't improve within a year or two."

T.W.I.G. Notes

This Week in Gaming -- literally dozens of people turned out to support the planned Lawrence County racetrack and casino:

"Even a parish priest supported Valley View Downs' application for a slot machine casino at a harness racing track to be built in Lawrence County. Not one of the nearly three dozen speakers opposed the casino as they addressed the state gaming control board yesterday in the Mahoning Township Community Center in Hillsville, fewer than 10 miles north of New Castle. The only potential glitch that came up, after the board held its public hearing on the license application, was a fast-approaching deadline between the applicant, Centaur Gaming, and Credit Suisse, which has agreed to lend the money to build the track, casino and related amenities."

Hmmm, Credit Suisse, that's a familiar name -- Barden has been negotiating for weeks with Credit Suisse for $650 million in casino financing, and owed the same bank repayment of a $200 million "bridge loan" that was supposed to kick-start casino construction on the North Shore.

... "Two casino executives want the state Legislature to let Pennsylvania casinos add popular table games, like blackjack, poker, dice and roulette, to the hundreds of slot machines already available for bettors. However, with Gov. Ed Rendell, a Democrat, and many legislative Republicans opposed to an expansion of legalized gambling right now, it doesn't appear the General Assembly will act on the idea anytime soon."

Here's the Morning Call version, which notes that revenues derived from table games, which are more labor-intensive than slot machines, would preferably have a lower tax rate than the 55 percent that's currently applied to slot machine revenue:

"Robert J. DeSalvio, president of Sands BethWorks Gaming, told the House Gaming Oversight Committee on Thursday that a tax rate of 15 percent on table games would be 'reasonable and significant.'"

Dispatches from the south

For the last few years, the Preakness Stakes at Pimlico Race Course has offered track owners in Maryland the chance to expound upon the necessity of slot machines:

"Pimlico Race Course -- home of Preakness Stakes, the second jewel of racing's Triple Crown -- has 138 years of history and tradition on its side, some say the race that once stood as a monument to Maryland horse racing tradition could be on its way to being a tombstone for an industry struggling to stay afloat amid increasing competition from surrounding states ... With Maryland's racetracks feeling the squeeze from higher purses in Delaware, West Virginia and Pennsylvania -- all of which have allowed slot machines at their tracks -- those in the racing industry suggest the voter referendum this fall that will decide the fate of slots in the state may also decide the fate of Maryland racing and its most prized and profitable event."

Reports the Examiner:

"Half of the estimated $1.3 billion slots eventually may generate could help fund education, but 7 percent -- about $90 million -- would go to enhance racing purses, which would help maintain the 69,000 thoroughbreds on 20,000 horse farms in Maryland."

Dispatches from the north

The much-debated Seneca casino in downtown Buffalo, N.Y., which figures to be a direct competitor to the casino racetrack in Erie, is finally under construction:

"Work is underway on the Seneca Nation's planned permanent downtown Buffalo casino. But opponents are still determined to keep any games from being played inside. Just in the past couple weeks the huge pile drivers have been pounding the holes for the posts of the permanent Buffalo Creek Casino."

There's also a nasty fight brewing over how much, if any, of the casino tax revenue should go to surrounding Erie County; the city of Buffalo says it deserves the whole pot. Buffalo Creek Casino is supposed to be open by 2010.

... Keep driving past Buffalo, and you'll hit the Niagara Falls casino, which has just released its expansion plans.

Odds and ends

The two Philadelphia casinos clear some important legal hurdles ... Nebraska is worried about Iowa building a casino on the states' shared border ... A plan for an Indian casino in Oakland, Calif., appears dead ... Pennsylvania isn't the only state handing down gambling-related indictments ... The slot machines will be spinning at Indiana Downs sometime in June ... Will Massachusetts finally legalize casino gambling? ... Quarterly operating profits at Atlantic City casinos were down nearly 18 percent ... Meet the new personnel at Wheeling Island.

Want to launder some money? Do it at a casino!

"Suspects linked to the ring were frequent players at Casino Rama, outside of Orillia, Ont., and Mohawk Racetrack, west of Toronto. They would play as much as twice a day, often depositing $9,000 into the slot machines each time, said Cpl. Joe Peel. 'They would go in, under the threshold of $10,000, play various machines and then, at some point, cash out, get the little stubs from the machines ... and then ask for a check,' said Peel, who is with the force's proceeds of crime section."

That's one way to clean your money.