The ten second summary of the case is that Steve Gray, part of a McLeod dealing that wound one person in jail on accounts of insider trading and bribery charges, wants to build a $100,000,000.00 casino in the flood ravaged west side of Downtown Cedar Rapids. This is meeting a lot of opposition for three main reasons;
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| Steve Gray pointing out his ideal build site |
1. People are suspicious towards this Gray character and perceive him as just trying to make a buck with little regard for the community, pointing to his agreement to contribute the state minimum 3% towards a county organization for the next twenty years while a similar deal for the most recent regional casino, the Isle in Waterloo, pays out 5.75%.
2. This side of the state is already quite saturated with casinos, with 4 casinos within an hour drive in pretty much any given direction. All of which are larger then the proposed one for Cedar Rapids, little out of state revenue would be generated at it could have a negative impact in our neighboring cities.
3. The main reason why casinos are typically considered a community decision is that there are inherent impacts the neighborhood that are unwelcome. People cite what happened in Dubuque, IA with Diamond Jo, there is a generally acknowledged 'bad neighborhood' that formed in that part of town. However, measuring such impacts is a tricky job. Several studies actually show Dubuque as being fairly satisfied with it's casinos.
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| Diamond Jo Casino in Dubuque |
Personally, I'm torn. I believe that if a group of investors wants to gamble their money on a casino, that as long as there isn't some underhanded land deals or some under the table pay offs to get it done, that we live in a capitalist economy where they should have the ability to do so. However, to ignore the extreme economic impact that casinos have historically had on existing businesses, for better or worse, would be unwise. Plus, I'm pretty sure some sort of an arrangement where the City will front a lot of initial expense for a venture that is all but guaranteed to be profitable. The stink grows when you consider a lot of the land the developers are looking at is already City owned and our council appears to be ready to offer the land as pretty much free using the argument that right now we get no tax revenue from this property and a casino.
I feel downtown Cedar Rapids is roaring back, a few instances of local businesses bouncing back strong after our devastating floods of '08. There are a lot of things to see and do and I really don't feel we need a big investment like this. On the other hand, the neighborhood the casino is talking about building in has next to nothing in it. it was wiped out in the flood and most of the businesses have relocated and dang near all the housing in that neighborhood was brought out by the city and turned into green space, which also adds to the general stink that there is land changing hands via our local government that is exploiting the circumstances.
So what would sway my vote? Here is my list of demands;
No free land - I don't care if it is a rotting empty lot. If I came along and wanted to open a petting zoo, the odds of me of getting the land free would be next to nil. If we want to drop the price with considerations to flood protection that extends beyond their property, or calculate the amount of infrastructure damage that needs to be repaired, fine, but none of this 'we have nothing better to do with this land' argument. Businesses have thrived there before and that land is not worthless.
Downtown District contributions - Downtown Cedar Rapids is roaring back, and I think a casino has the potential to be a big boost, but I could also see them spurring a new growth spot and try to make them the heart of down town, franchising along 1st avenue or becoming a source of political pressure when street repair dollars are being allocated could split the downtown area, we already have a great downtown, and I would like to see something that acknowledges and strengthens that with a promised annual donation to the downtown district. (It's worth noting that this group supports a Linn County casino.)
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| Riverside's Buffet |
An Awesome Buffet - I'm serious, Other casinos have major amenities that give them nice appeal, Riverside's Golf Course or the Isles' Vegas style shows. I understand this casino will be quit small by comparison, but having a nice Sunday brunch spread might actually give me, and many other non-gamblers, something to enjoy.
The waters of this debate have been muddied, shockingly, with people resorting to finger pointing and following the money to realize opposition groups are being funded by the aforementioned area casinos, and local politicians failing to provide their correspondence with the developers. Typical political warfare items that really become background noise since they are either hard to prove or easy to assume. One thing is for sure, the vote is going to be close, and I will be very interested in seeing which side comes out on top in a town that has had successful grassroots opposition to plans that have been supported by local movers and shakers before.
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