Source: The Daily Telegraph
James Packer with new employee and former federal MP Mark Arbib / Pic: Brad Hunter Source: The Daily Telegraph
JAMES Packer has promised a $1 billion luxury hotel - and $114 million a year in gaming tax revenue - to the state government in return for allowing him to build his dream 70-storey Barangaroo resort casino.
Premier Barry O'Farrell yesterday agreed, giving first approvals for the project and indicating Mr Packer will not have to worry about a tender - and perhaps not even have to pay a licence fee - to operate a VIP-only high rollers casino in the hotel.
The new facility will feature more than 150 gaming tables - about half the number at The Star casino - but will be "invitation only" for high rollers, particularly wealthy Asian gamblers or "whales".
"(It's) invitation-only gaming, individuals will not be able to walk off the street to access the facilities. It's not dissimilar to current high roller rooms," Mr O'Farrell said.
He said the government would not approve poker machines for the new casino.
"What they're talking about is something like 1300 jobs during the construction phase, around 1200 jobs when operational," he said.
"When fully operational, it could inject more than $300 million a year into the state's economy. It is about trying to ensure that Sydney attracts investment ... it's about growing the tourism sector."
The hotel tower will have 350 rooms - 20 per cent of those being suites or VIP accommodation.
The top floors will house about 75 luxury apartments while the site will also feature high-end retail, conference facilities and a pool, day spa and amenity deck. The VIP gaming facilities will be named Sky Salons and the Mahogany Room.
Crown vice-president Todd Nisbet told a conference in Sydney yesterday that the hotel's service would lift it from "five star" to "six star", with all staff to be Mandarin-speaking and the hotel to be very much aimed at the Chinese.
The Premier yesterday ruled out calls from former prime minister Paul Keating to return the hotel to an original plan under Labor to have it jut out over the Harbour. "I think that would be a terrible precedent given the Harbour is one of the greatest assets and attributes this city has," he said.
It is understood the new hotel-casino will be fully approved in six months, with Mr O'Farrell indicating the casino licence would be approved early next year.
But the casino will not operate until November 2019, when the exclusivity licence on The Star casino ends.
Even though Mr Packer is expected to win regulatory approval next month to have his stake in Echo Entertainment (owner of The Star) rise to 25 per cent, he is expected to dump his existing 10 per cent in Echo shares when he receives final approval for his Barangaroo facility.
The proposal will not go to tender as Mr O'Farrell has deemed it an "unsolicited proposal". Under the policy, if proponents can come up with an idea and show its "uniqueness", they need not go to tender.
He said the uniqueness of the proposal was partly because Mr Packer had already signed with Lend Lease to build a hotel at Barangaroo.
Echo Entertainment chairman John O'Neill criticised the process, saying The Star casino would have liked a chance to bid for Barangaroo.
He said if a tender had been called, overseas interests would have taken part.
"My own experience when I ran State Bank of NSW and it was privatised and sold by tender ... there were 10 expressions of interest," he said.
Last night, in a dinner address at the Museum of Contemporary Art, Mr Packer said even if there was a tender, he would have won it anyway and thanked both the Labor Party and the Liberal Party for backing the proposal.
"If there was a tender, it would be very hard to see how we wouldn't win," he said, citing his company's reputation for building high-class resorts and casinos.
"There has never been a billion-dollar casino built in the world without slot machines. There's no one who is going to try harder than our company to build something special. This is more than just about money for me. I'm a great believer in Sydney."
Despite yesterday's announcement, Crown's share price fell by 3c to $9.46.
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