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* This gaming bill gets heavier by the week. Two smallish “satellite” casinos with 400-600 gaming positions each are apparently in play…
The site being looked at in Southern Illinois is the Walker’s Bluff entertainment development in Carterville. It features a restaurant, winery, gift store and music venue. The first sign that Walker’s Bluff wanted to be a player in the casino talks came earlier this year when the company hired former state Rep. Dan Reitz, D-Steelville, in early April to serve as its lobbyist in the Capitol.
I’ve been to Walker’s Bluff. Wow, what a place. The owners have put a fortune into it. The grounds are definitely large enough to expand.
* The other spot they’re looking at is Decatur, but the mayor is dubious…
Decatur Mayor Mike McElroy said the city isn’t actively pursuing a casino. He said he only learned of the idea last week during a short telephone conversation.
“This call just comes to me out of the blue,” McElroy said. “We don’t say `no’ to anything. But I don’t think there is a snowball’s chance in hell.”
posted by Rich Miller
Thursday, Jun 4, 15 @ 10:16 am
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Previous Post: The shape of things to come
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They should add the racetracks to the Fairgrounds to help pay for all the deferred maintenance and dilapidated buildings. Would not only bring in revenue, would save the state money.
Comment by Ahoy! Thursday, Jun 4, 15 @ 10:22 am
=== “We don’t say `no’ to anything. But I don’t think there is a snowball’s chance in hell.”===
Some English Major: Is this an oxymoron?
Comment by A guy Thursday, Jun 4, 15 @ 10:33 am
Can we include Danville in this casino bargin? It would be the 2nd closest casino to Indianapolis, and the folks there have been trying for years now. It makes more sense to have a casino in Danville then in Decatur.
A Chicago casino is great so long as the City does not have control over it. A Chicago owned casino would breed even further corruption.
Cook County could also allow for video gaming at bars and restaurants. This could help provide lots of additional revenue for the City and surrounding municipalities.
Comment by Sam Thursday, Jun 4, 15 @ 10:41 am
Decatur needs real jobs not additional gaming. Video slots are saving most of mom and pop bars in the city. A casino could destroy local eating and drinking places.
Once again Springfield not really taking care of real problem. But then again maybe I could win enough money at the new casino and get out of the State of illinois.
Comment by Surprised Thursday, Jun 4, 15 @ 10:52 am
“All in.”
Comment by walker Thursday, Jun 4, 15 @ 11:02 am
Amazing enthusiasm for a regressive tax. Amazing
Comment by plutocrat03 Thursday, Jun 4, 15 @ 11:04 am
===Amazing enthusiasm for a regressive tax===
I think the enthusiasm is for an optional tax, a tax on someone else, or at least a tax I can choose not to pay by staying out of the casinos.
But be careful Decatur and elsewhere. Casinos are not economic engines, they are economic vacuum cleaners. They suck in dollars that might otherwise be spent elsewhere.
Comment by 47th Ward Thursday, Jun 4, 15 @ 11:23 am
“I can choose not to pay by staying out”
That’s great. Gaming has gotten less than 20 of my dollars over the last decade, so I tend to vote with my feet as well.
Like the studies of the Lottery show, the casino gaming revenues disproportionately come from the lower end of the economic spectrum. Just seems incongruous to promote gaming while arguing against regressive taxation.
Comment by plutocrat03 Thursday, Jun 4, 15 @ 11:56 am
IMHO: Any new casinos (including one in Chicago)should be owned in trust for all of the State’s pension systems. Everyone is saying the pensions are what is bringing the state down. Well let’s start with a revenue stream from any new casinos. The state, county and municipality would still get their cut as per current law.
Comment by Frank Ambrose Thursday, Jun 4, 15 @ 12:47 pm
I’m beginning to think anyone who so desperately wants these things; deserves them.
Comment by A guy Thursday, Jun 4, 15 @ 1:11 pm
What the hell, the video poker places are to some degree very mini casinos now. Why not.
Comment by OneMan Thursday, Jun 4, 15 @ 2:11 pm
The nuclear option if Chicago does not get a casino will be to dump all of the Chicago teachers into TRS. Downstate does not want the cost shift to them and Chicago can’t afford paying twice for teacher pensions. Then Chicago will use the freed up property taxes to fund the police and fire pensions.
A lawyer friend who predicted SB1’s slap down of the legislature says the City would be a firm ground to demand in court the sales tax money that goes out of the city and never comes back. His firm has done research work for the city on these type of issues.
Comment by ROLLO TOMASI Thursday, Jun 4, 15 @ 2:18 pm
Rollo, I’ll take a gallon of whatever you’ve been drinking today.
Comment by Arthur Andersen Thursday, Jun 4, 15 @ 4:00 pm
Rollo, the kids at the elementary school down the street from me could have predicted the slap down of SB1.
That was the point of the exercise; a definitive ruling from the Supremes on the clear language of the Constitution to get noted legal mind Ty and Big Brain Bruce off everyone’s back with their nonsense.
I don’t get what your lawyer friend is talking about. Are you claiming that courts would rule that the state sales tax levied in Chicago, or any jurisdiction, would remain with those local governments?
Why?
Comment by Wordslinger Thursday, Jun 4, 15 @ 8:01 pm
Just rename the entire state Cicero and get on with the games of chance.
Comment by Under Further Review Thursday, Jun 4, 15 @ 10:57 pm