Sands Bethlehem proposes $40M Expansion

It’s been reported that Sands Casino Resort Bethlehem is planning an expansion which would give it the biggest casino floor in the state.

The South Bethlehem venue has yet to confirm these plans. However, plans filed with an eastern Pennsylvanian city show that a 97,500-square-foot addition to the rear of the existing casino has been proposed.

Sands Casino Resort Bethlehem first opened its doors in 2009 and is situated on the former site of the historic Bethlehem Steel plant in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, an hour from Philadelphia and the northern New Jersey suburbs and 90 minutes from NYC.

The 2015 audit of the Bethlehem venue lists “Sands table games expansion” at a projected cost of $40m. The extension proposes a multi-level expansion of the north side of the building that would add more than 35,570sq.ft of gambling space, including a separate poker room and restaurants.

Table games are a sizable source of casino revenue, with the current poker area the center of the casino floor. By moving this, room would be created to add more blackjack, roulette and craps tables, local newspaper The Morning Call reported.

Bethlehem Mayor Bob Donchez told the paper: “I think it’s extremely important to make it more of a destination center.”

Pennsylvania’s Gaming Control Board would have to approve the changes.