BET founder on board for casino - Joining Pinnacle, he brings minority presence, capital, star power to bid for Phila. site. Hearings are Monday

Pinnacle Entertainment Inc., one of five applicants for a city gambling license, has enlisted Robert L. Johnson, the founder of Black Entertainment Television and majority owner of the Charlotte Bobcats NBA team, as a partner in its proposed $350 million Philadelphia waterfront casino.

A Pinnacle executive said the move to bring in Johnson, who in 2001 sold BET to entertainment giant Viacom Inc. for $3 billion, would meet a state guideline to include minority investors and could enhance Pinnacle's chances of landing one of two coveted city gambling licenses, on the eve of final hearings in Harrisburg.

"We have been talking for a while about doing a project together, and this made sense for both parties," Pinnacle president Wade Hundley said in an interview this week in Lake Charles, La., where Pinnacle won voter approval Tuesday to build a second casino. "We think this is really an ideal fit for Philadelphia and an ideal fit for this project."

Hundley said the move would also put Pinnacle on par with its competitors in terms of capital resources and "star power."

In addition to Las Vegas-based Pinnacle, three other slot parlors are proposed for Philadelphia's Delaware River waterfront: Planet Hollywood's $500 million Riverwalk Casino; a $500 million project by SugarHouse Gaming; and a $410 million casino proposed by Foxwoods Development Corp. The fifth slots parlor is the $350 million TrumpStreet Casino & Entertainment Complex for East Falls and Nicetown.

The five applicants will go before the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board on Monday for 21/2 days of hearings to determine their financial and operational suitability for a license.

The board is expected to award the two city licenses in late December.

For the last year, the other four applicants have been touting their own billionaires and celebrity investors. Donald Trump is with TrumpStreet, and billionaire developer Neil Bluhm of Chicago is behind the SugarHouse Casino. Foxwoods has recording industry mogul Quincy Jones as an investor, while Planet Hollywood has played up its team of local investors, largely from Philadelphia's African American business community.

Doug Harbach, spokesman for the Gaming Board, said Johnson was listed as a potential witness for next week's proceedings for Pinnacle.

Pinnacle officials said Johnson would have up to a 33.3 percent stake in the company's proposed waterfront casino, which translates to his contributing as much as $120 million of the estimated $350 million cost of the project. Pinnacle would own and finance the rest.

"Obviously, he satisfies our minority requirement, but he's much more than satisfying a minority requirement," Hundley said. "He's a great businessman, a fantastic individual. He's bringing real money to the table."

Johnson, who is 60, is ranked 374 this year on Forbes magazine's list of the 400 richest Americans, with an estimated net worth of $1 billion. Hundley and Johnson said negotiations about a casino partnership began several months ago.

Johnson owns and runs RLJ Cos., of Bethesda, Md., which provides strategic investment and consultation for the real estate, hospitality/restaurant, professional sports, movie production, gambling and recording industries. The company is one of the largest black-owned businesses in the United States, according to Black Enterprise magazine.

"I have been interested in the gaming business for a while, and this was a natural fit," Johnson said. "I have been successful with businesses in entertainment and sports. BET is a strong entertainment brand, and gaming is a strong entertainment product."

Johnson's RLJ Development L.L.C. -- a privately held hotel real estate investment company -- is a significant owner of hotels, with more than 130 properties totaling nearly $3 billion in assets. RLJ Development is one of the nation's largest Marriott and Hilton franchisees.

In sports, in addition to the Charlotte Bobcats, Johnson is also majority owner of the Charlotte Sting in the Women's National Basketball Association.

Johnson said he was among the first African Americans found suitable for a gambling license in Las Vegas. He also owns Caribbean Gaming & Entertainment, a video-lottery-terminal company.

With Philadelphia, Johnson said: "I feel the Gaming Board, and the community at large, wants to see a diversity in ownership and participation. That was another reason I decided to pursue this."

Hundley said Johnson has indicated an interest in bringing in smaller investors with "celebrity appeal."

"He knows a lot of people in the entertainment world," Hundley said.