Mayor: Sands' Bethlehem expansion delayed by possible sale

The mayor says plans to expand the Sands Casino Resort Bethlehem have apparently been delayed by talks that the casino could be sold to MGM Resorts International for $1.3 billion.

Sands last year announced plans for a $90 million expansion that would add restaurants and a separate poker room and give the casino the biggest gaming floor in the state. Sands officials applied for permits to do that work, but haven't picked them up.

Bethlehem Mayor Robert Donchez believes the rumored sale, first reported in March, is behind the delay.

Officials with Sands and MGM aren't commenting on the reported negotiations.

The casino's parent company, Las Vegas Sands Corp., said in March that it "is regularly approached about potential interest in various assets" but has no specific comment on the Bethlehem casino.