MGM weighing options in Toronto, report suggests

MGM Resorts International is eyeing prospects for a hotel-casino development in downtown Toronto.

Canada's Globe and Mail newspaper reported Tuesday that the casino company's development staff visited the city and hired a local lobbying firm.

According the newspaper, two MGM Resorts officials had informal conversations about a casino with Toronto Mayor Rob Ford's staff and other officials during last week's council meeting.

"MGM is exploring a $2 billion-to-$6 billion investment in the city, one that could go well beyond slot machines and roulette wheels to include hotels, restaurants, spas and convention facilities," according to the newspaper.

"It's an amazing market, it's an amazing city," Alan Feldman, MGM's senior vice president of public affairs, told the newspaper in an interview from Japan on Monday. "We'd be prepared to invest an awful lot in the development of the concept."

MGM's inquiries are in the very early stages, Feldman said. The company isn't interested in a small project.

The Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corp. revealed last month that it plans to open a casino in the greater Toronto area as part of a sweeping overhaul of the province's gaming industry