Toronto Mayor calls casino a “golden opportunity”

It the letter, Ford claims that a casino and convention centre complex would attract an additional 130,000 visitors to the city annually, generating us$ 392 million in direct spending. Ford also argues that the city would receive about us$ 150 million in annual revenue from allowing a casino to be built in the city.

That number is higher than the us$ 50 to 100 million in annual revenue the Ontario Lottery and Gaming has previously said the city could receive and much higher than the us$ 3 million that the cities of Niagara Falls and Windsor reportedly get.

The source of Ford’s numbers is not made clear in the letter. “This is a golden opportunity for Toronto and one we probably won’t see again for a generation. Rather than just imposing new taxes to fund transit expansion, the city could dedicate its us$ 150 million share to building new rapid transit that our city needs, while keeping Toronto an affordable place to live,” the letter states. “The OLG has been clear: there will be a new casino in the GTA. If it’s not in Toronto, it will be right on our border. But, the fact is, building there won’t benefit the province as much. And, it won’t benefit Toronto at all.”

Several major Las Vegas developers have expressed interest in building a casino in Toronto, including MGM Resorts International, Onex, Caesars and Wynn Resorts.

MGM Resorts International has even went so far as to unveil their vision for a 278,709 sqm complex at Exhibition Place and host a job fair for the yet to be approved facility. In his letter, Ford estimated that a casino could create 10,000 permanent jobs along with 7,000 to 11,000 temporary jobs.

“The fact is, too many people in Toronto are unemployed. For years, our city’s unemployment rate has been higher than the national average — and higher than neighbouring cities,” Ford says. “That difference equals about 80,000 jobs. Last year, city council adopted a new Economic Growth Strategy designed to stimulate job creation. Part of our plan to attract new employers to Toronto is to get more investors to visit our city.”

A potential casino for Toronto has been divisive from day one. While Ford and several allies on council have spoken out in favour of the idea, many activists and community groups have cried fouling, saying the social costs of such a facility would negate any gains.

Last week, a union representing 20,000 city workers even put out an open letter, saying they would publically lobby against a casino. The letter from CUPE 79 was released after an internal poll revealed that 67 per cent of members oppose a casino outright. City council is expected to vote on the matter in May.