Add another mayor to the list of municipal leaders that does not support the idea of bringing full-blown casino expansion to his city.
The most recent to make his feelings known is Burlington Mayor Rick Goldring, who has cited strong numbers, albeit dated, to defend his position that residents within his constituency do not want full-blown casino gaming in their backyards.
In an article by The Hamilton Spectator, Mayor Goldring has referred to a 1997 referendum in which residents of Burlington voted against the expansion in resounding fashion.
“Twenty-eight thousand voters said 'no,' which represented 78 per cent of the votes cast,” Goldring explained. “I believe the people of Burlington are not interested in having a casino.”
The report also shines a light on the tough spot municipalities are in regarding expanded gaming. It states that even though municipal leaders may not be in favour of the full-blown casinos in urban areas, they are reliant on their cut of gaming revenue to balance their budgets.
(With files from The Hamilton Spectator)
The best thing that could
The best thing that could ever happen is for all the Mayors and Reeves in Ontario to have a special meeting and collectively agree that Casinos are not welcome in any Ontario city.Unfortunately a few short sighted mayors have already said they want one.But if such a meeting were held I have a feeling that the majority of Mayors and Reeves would be opposed.
I don't think Burlington is
I don't think Burlington is reliant on any casino revenue, although a fair number of residents are involved in horse racing. There are not many communities that won't feel some sort of impact from the demise of the SAR program.