Get facts straight on casino gambling

South Coast Today
By Steve Norton

I noticed the article by Kevin Thomas, several days ago that made a strong case against a casino resort for New Bedford. I have no problem with anyone being opposed to gaming, whether on moral, religious or even economic reasons. But when someone uses Atlantic City's experience as an example for being opposed to casino gaming, I would hope that they got their facts straight. I was there for the 1976 referendum; preparing the impact statement; helped draft the Casino Control Act and determine the minimum standards for a casino/hotel; and then participated in the opening of the first legal casino, outside the State of Nevada, Resorts International Casino Hotel, in 1978.

I take exception to some of the issues mentioned by Mr. Thomas that need to be expanded on:

Crime: Atlantic City crime did increase, but proportionate to the increase in people at risk; including 30 million new visitors (over 800 percent); and where 60,000 new casino and support jobs were created, most commuting from other South Jersey communities. Both of these tremendous increases in people at risk, are not considered when studying the FBI Crime Statistics; because all of the crimes committed by or against residents, commuting employees and visitors, are compared against Atlantic City's permanent population which is under 40,000. How would Mr. Thomas feel about a Disney World, Universal or Epcot theme park in New Bedford? The latest FBI statistics for 2007 shows Orlando, another major tourist resort, has three and one half times the violent crime, and three times the property crime, as Atlantic City, with about the same number of visitors.

Organized crime: Perhaps Mr. Thomas has been watching some famous films about Las Vegas, when referring to mob influence. In New Jersey, even casino suppliers and contractors have to go through a difficult licensing process. If fact the largest union in AC, was required to remove their president and secretary, when the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement and the Casino Control Commission, determined the leadership was too close to questionable Philadelphia individuals. Under Federal Labor Law, this would not have been possible, because nothing illegal had occurred; but the courts determined that the NJ Casino Control Act, gave these Agencies the enforcement power to take such action.

Unemployment: Atlantic City does have high unemployment, like the rest of the nation. But Atlantic City's problem has been accelerated by tens of thousands of slot machines in Eastern Pennsylvania and New York, impacting the resort's major markets of Philadelphia, New York City, and North Jersey. But I can remember a time in the 1980s, when the casino industry had to bring in workers from closed steel mills in West Virginia, when we couldn't find enough employees in six South Jersey counties to meet our needs.

No new jobs: This statement is totally inaccurate. The 11 casinos in AC employ nearly 39,000 employees down from 44,000 several years ago, a current average of 3,500 for each casino and an estimated 1,500 per casino in support industries. But the great number of jobs, including family medical and other benefits are full-time, unlike seasonal beach or ski resorts. And I would suggest that the average wage exceeds the average of any remaining textile factories in Massachusetts. And better yet, over 90 percent of the jobs would go to residents on New Bedford and surrounding communities, and few positions would require even a high school diploma; unlike the bio-science industry the state is so vigorously pursuing.

Traffic: Mr. Thomas is correct that there would be a lot of new visitors to New Bedford, probably two to three million each year. But since the most likely casino site would be in the industrial area on the Acushnet River, the on-off ramps to I-195; would lessen the impact to city center, and the new traffic would be spread out over a 24-hour period, further reducing any increase in morning and afternoon peaks.

More costs for the city: Atlantic City did have to increase their police, but casino real estate taxes eventually covered two-thirds of the city's total tax base and one third of the counties. In the early years the tax rate in the city went from nearly $9 per thousand, to under $2. And Mr. Thomas' reference to the cost of casino oversight is misplaced as this would fall to state agencies, where tax income would greatly exceed any oversight costs, not reimbursed by the casinos themselves.

The one area where we agree is a possible increase in compulsive gambling, but casinos would financially support appropriate agencies dealing with those that have various compulsions. But if New Bedford and other Massachusetts citizens are concerned about this behavior, then they should argue for the closure of the state lottery, one of the most successful in the country, where communities with the lowest incomes frequently have the highest per capita spend. But now we're saying that citizens don't have freedom of choice on how they spend their disposable dollars.

I applaud Kevin Thomas, who indicates his support for casinos in Massachusetts, but believe he is misinformed in his conclusions about a casino in New Bedford. Remember New Bedford would at most receive one casino license, so any impacts, positive or negative, would be less than 10 percent of Atlantic City's!