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California Hope to Hit Jackpot With Inner-city Casinos27 May 2001DETROIT, Michigan – May 27, 2001 –As reported by the San Francisco Chronicle: "Detroit, a once-abandoned city pushing for a rebound, has become the nation's largest testing ground for urban casinos, which bring in more than $2 million a day here. Its experience with inner-city gambling shows that as in any high-stakes game, there are no winners without losers. "In the Bay Area, the cities of Oakland and San Pablo are looking to follow Detroit's lead, angling to bring the big-money glitz of Vegas casinos to the region's urban areas. They see an unbeatable jackpot in the millions of tax dollars that would pour into city coffers, with the added bonus of creating jobs and drawing tourists. "But opponents worry that casinos will attract crime and corruption. They fear that making gambling easily accessible will attract too many people who can't afford it and who can't stop. "And the country's two best examples of big-city casinos -- in Detroit and New Orleans -- are proof that such gambles don't always live up to their promises of economic prosperity. "`Typically, (casino development) is not going to be the windfall proponents claim,] said William Eadington, director of the Institute for the Study of Gambling and Commercial Gaming at the University of Nevada, Reno. "…Eadington has this warning for cities that think they can re-create a little bit of Las Vegas in their backyards, `The economic gains for urban casinos are less than for destination resort casinos, and the social problems are greater.' "…In Oakland, Mayor Jerry Brown and City Manager Robert Bobb have visions of a casino on the former Oakland Army Base, at the foot of the Bay Bridge. Casino revenues would fuel development of a luxury hotel -- which Brown foresees as an architectural wonder designed by famed architect Frank Gehry -- and an American Indian history museum. "And millions of dollars in casino taxes could help the cash-strapped city pay for everything from affordable housing to new sewers to more cops, Bobb said…" |