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the chips are cooking....
Christian Democrat MP Reverend Fred Nile confirmed the meeting with Mr Packer and said he would back the project - with strict terms.
"We need a firm guarantee there will be no poker machines, not one, now or in the future," Mr Nile said.
"We also want legislation protecting staff from passive smoking. Mr Packer has guaranteed he will do this but we want it to be part of the legislation."
Mr Nile's final condition to green-light the legislation is increased funding for counselling, including a chaplaincy service at the Sydney Crown casino when it is built.
"We will require the casino to support a chaplaincy on site," he said.
Shooters and Fishers MP Robert Borsak said the party would be "very favourably disposed" to looking at the proposal, and would approach it with a "positive view".
Last night upper house opposition leader Luke Foley said Labor would back the Crown proposal as long as it passed planning requirements and guaranteed no poker machines.
If all goes to plan, remedial work will take 18 months and building the 350-room hotel will begin by 2015.
The project, which is expected to generate more than 1300 jobs during construction and 1400 jobs a year once complete, will be finished by 2018. It is understood Crown may seek to amend its current proposal, raising the height of the glass tower to 70 storeys to accommodate luxury apartments and "salons" - which are villas that high rollers can stay and gamble in.
By 2018, the development will include a Mahogany Room for high-rollers, which will sit in mothballs until the government's exclusivity arrangement with The Star owners Echo runs out in November 2019.
Before work begins, the design will need to be approved by an international design panel.
Former prime minister Paul Keating's support for the plan, along with the state government, is crucial to approval.
Mr Keating has previously said there was "little doubt", Mr Packer "could build a hotel of world rank".
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Everyone's on board except Gus and I wonder why... Apparently Fred — at his own expense so there would not be any conflict of interest — went to see the Crown Casino in Melbourne, on the invitation of James Packer. If you are psychologist, or a pole dancer like me, you would know two things... One the Sydneysiders hate being outdone by the little village on the Yarra and two, there has been for a while — if the memory in my caboose is correct — some not so subtle grinding ADVERTISING IN SYDNEY introduced by an unstoppable doorman in a top hat, promoting how Crown Casino in Melbourne is employing 10 million people, is training a zillion more in the kitchen and several billions in bed-making, while providing fun for all ages, as long as one is tall enough to reach the slot of the machines...
But that's me... Cynical to the end... I'm more inclined to see sciences take precedence over gambling... Hey, I know, I live in the biggest gambling country of the universe and life itself is a gamble... So my constricted views mean zilch in the greater schemes of understanding the big bowling alley in the sky...
- By Gus Leonisky at 14 Dec 2012 - 4:11pm
- Gus Leonisky's blog
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a chapel for gamblers...
Mr Nile's final condition to green-light the legislation is increased funding for counselling, including a chaplaincy service at the Sydney Crown casino when it is built.
"We will require the casino to support a chaplaincy on site," he said.
Shooters and Fishers MP Robert Borsak said the party would be "very favourably disposed" to looking at the proposal, and would approach it with a "positive view".
Read more: http://www.news.com.au/business/companies/barangaroo-casino-james-packers-crowning-glory/story-fnda1bsz-1226499631286#ixzz2F0JtmT6p
What? No shooting range?...
bring it on...
Christian groups want a referendum on gay marriage, saying Australians will reject any change to the status quo if the question posed was a ''black and white'' choice on whether to allow ''homosexuals to marry''.
As divisions emerged among the Greens and same-sex marriage advocates over a referendum, Reverend Fred Nile joined the Australian Christian lobby in calling for the matter to be decided on election day.
Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/opinion/political-news/christian-groups-welcome-gay-marriage-referendum-20130429-2io0q.html#ixzz2Rox0Kvg3
misunderstanding above the clouds...
Every year, Fred Nile, god bless him, prays to god that the Sydney Gay And Lesbian Mardi Gras gets soaked in massive downpours of rain... Usually all Freddy achieves is a few dark clouds on the horizon... God, being older than 6000 years and still working under order from Joe Hockey (retirement age to be heavy-lifted to 7,000 years), is a bit deaf these days... Who would not be with so many hours on the clock... Thus when Fred begged god to rain on Sydney's "debauchery", god misunderstood the SGALMG parade for the ANZAC parade...
Today, in good old Fred Nile Sydney, it's raining cats and dogs for the WARS remembrance parade. The Sydney ANZAC day will need a few brollies and tarps... The sun might come out though. Who knows...
As an amateur climatologist, Gus can tell you with authority that it has nothing to do with god, but the vagaries of lows and highs, up there in the sky...
car parking for patrons. public — shove out...
Most of Barangaroo's public on-street parking would be abolished and the number of spaces allocated to private development significantly increased, under proposed changes to the area's concept plan.
The number of on-street car spaces within the 22-hectare precinct would be slashed from the approved 275 spots to just 40, if the modification is approved by the state government.
At the same time, the 1166 car spaces for apartments would almost double to an estimated 2100 to 2205 spaces.
read more: http://www.smh.com.au/nsw/barangaroo-public-parking-cut-as-residential-parking-increases-in-latest-proposed-changes-20150326-1m891g.html
Obviously, the state will provide frequent expensive public transport (or a monorail?) to the reduced Barangaroo lookout connected to a 10 cars carpark in Bankstown. It is quite extraordinary the way the "Business" and the neo-fascist governments work hand in hand to stop public enjoyment and promote excellence in exclusivity... Should you be coming to the Barangaroo "park" (reduced) with the family and the dog and find no parking space for your heap, drive back to Bankstown for your "public" transport system — children under five would be free but the dog would have to run along side the bus, the train or the tram — whichever comes first. By nightfall when finally reaching the summit of the lookout, the brats would be screaming because they are starving, the nirvana of the public space would have of course an array of fast food outlets under the gleaming signs of golden double arches that could be seen from here to Wollongong...
From the tower of the Crown casino, a new plot designed to promote an anti fast-food campaign to shut the illumination down and replace it with the tasteful Crown logo would be hatching as the complete takeover of the "publick" space since no-one in their insanity would go to the "park" — now full of empty plastic bottles and hamburger wrappers. Of course the management of the Crown would offer to provide cleaning at cost as long as the "publick" space remains closed to the "publick"...
fred's visa capers...
This cartoon is a bit out of date but I did not find the time to finish it until today. It's not worth a new entry but here it is:
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