JAMES Packer's new Sydney casino is one step closer after legislation for the project's licence passed the NSW upper house.
The controversial $1.3 billion project at Barangaroo, on Sydney Harbour, requires a special licence.
Expected to be open for business from November 2019, the city's second casino will only admit invited VIP gamblers and guests, with high minimum bets and no poker machines.
The bill received bipartisan support but there has been disquiet from independents and the Greens.
In parliament on Wednesday, Greens MP John Kaye tried to move a number of amendments, including one to erase a clause that says the Independent Liquor and Gaming Authority can only amend licence conditions with the agreement of Mr Packer.
Mr Kaye said the clause shifted power from the independent body back into the hands of the casino.
"Keeping the regulatory authority with the capacity to hold conditions over the licence is an essential ingredient ... of maintaining some degree of discipline over that casino," he told parliament.
But his efforts failed with the bill passing the upper house 27 votes to seven.
Premier Barry O'Farrell announced his support for the development earlier this month, saying it would attract international tourists to Sydney.
The agreement guarantees total licence fees and gaming tax payments of at least $1 billion to the NSW government over its first 15 years.
Independent MP Alex Greenwich has previously urged the government not to rush through the legislation, saying it should allow time for community consultation and input from crime and welfare experts.
"Twenty-five dollar roulette tables do not attract high rolling 'whales'," he said earlier this month, arguing that planned multi-player gaming terminals are just "dressed up poker machines".
University of Sydney problem gambling expert, Dr Chris Hunt, told AAP the government should consult experts and others about the casino's potential social impacts.
"They're taking the casino operator at their word which I think is a very dangerous precedent," he said.
Dr Hunt also said high minimum bets and a 24-hour "cooling off" membership period wouldn't stop problem gamblers from betting at Barangaroo.
"Wherever you have a casino there's going to be problem gambling and for him (Packer) to say 'we've designed it for high rollers' is being disingenuous," he said.
Mr O'Farrell said Crown still needs to get statutory approvals before the project is finally approved.
The processes by the Department of Planning and Infrastructure and the Independent Liquor and Gaming Authority will include an "opportunity for public input".
But there seems little doubt that Barangaroo will house Mr Packer's casino.
"Passage of the legislation ... brings closer the investment of $1.3 billion to develop a high quality tourism resort, combining world class accommodation, premier tourist activities and a highly regulated members-only gaming facility," Mr O'Farrell said.
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