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The almighty dollar appears to be the driving force behind Mayor Jim Watson?s interest in Ottawa pursuing a major downtown casino.
?We may have an opportunity to see if we can keep more gaming revenue in Ottawa and Ontario.
?On any given month, literally millions of dollars from Ontario residents is staying in Quebec and that doesn?t help our city, or hospitals or schools. If we have an opportunity to repatriate some of that money, we should have a serious discussion with the province,? Watson said, responding to a resident unhappy with the prospect of a casino.
The mayor?s e-mail is contained in a package of information obtained through an access to information request by the Sun.
The identity of the resident is protected.
?Ottawa?s downtown attractions for tourism right now are a great draw. A casino may seem compelling in terms of revenue, but it will create a lot of gambling addicts,? the e-mail from the resident reads.
Since the province announced it was looking at adding major casinos throughout the province, with Ottawa on their radar, Watson?s office has been fielding residents? comments ? both for and against.
Watson continues to make it clear it?s an idea he believes is worth pursuing for the city.
And thank goodness for that.
Much work still has to be done before Ottawa is close to getting a casino, but the mayor?s office, including Watson himself, has been involved in meetings with the OLG officials.
If council does decide to proceed, Watson is promising plenty of public consultation beforehand, but has little interest in holding a referendum.
?Any decision would require public consultation and support from council.
?I am not convinced that the expense of a referendum is necessarily the way to accomplish that consultation goal,? Watson responded to another e-mail found in the access request.
That e-mail came from the Ontario Horse Racing Industry Association, which is in favour of a private member?s bill from Lambton-Kent-Middlesex MPP Monte McNaughton.
McNaughton?s Bill 76 calls on municipalities to hold local referendums on casinos.
It has passed both first and second reading, and is now waiting for committee approval before going back to the house for a third reading.
Watson has asked for clarification on how the bill might affect Ottawa.
The city now makes about $4 million in revenue from the Rideau Carleton Raceway, a larger, downtown casino is expected to generate much more.
In a briefing note to the mayor?s office, Saad Bashir, the city?s manager of economic development, outlines some of the pros and cons.
?Although a site has not yet been identified for an Ottawa casino, casinos also act to spawn further urban development and redevelopment projects.
?Casino Niagara and the new Fallsview Casino provide an excellent example of how employment by legal gaming is absorbed within a local labour market. The resort provided 4,200 direct jobs between them for Niagara Falls and several thousand spinoff positions,? Bashir reports.
And Bashir estimates upwards of 500 new jobs, along with about 800 service sector spots, would be created.
Add to that an estimated two to three million visitors to the city, and it?s clear why Watson is eager to at least explore the idea.
There are risks, of course, Bashir points out, including the likely need to beef up policing and staffing community health and social service agencies.
?A common misconception about gambling is the perceived association between gambling facilities and the incidence of crime. Although false, Ottawa?s image as a city that has pro-family values and concern for the social, cultural and economic health of its citizens may raise contradictory opinions about the introduction of a casino.?
Is that a nice way of saying Ottawa is not just happy, but proud of its reputation as the city that fun forgot!
Source: http://www.ottawasun.com/2012/08/04/sherring-pros-and-cons-of-downtown-casino
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