During a time when the allocation of public money is heavily scrutinized, at least some blue collar workers in Indiana believe that it is very important to keep the Hoosier Park racino up and running

. "Anderson has a lot of tough issues now," said local tire shop owner Jon Walker, "but if the casino (Hoosier Park) wasn't here, we'd have a ton more."

An article today by indystar.com outlines the current problems that the Centaur LLC-run Hoosier Park faces under the terms of the deal which led to the expanded gaming at the track.

"Hoosier Park and spinoff industries it supports are so valuable," representative Terri Austin was quoted as saying, "because it creates entry points in the work force for people in a community that really needs jobs."

Later in the indystar.com article, Austin refers to a study released last week by Anderson's Chamber of Commerce. According to the article, in addition to the 1,100 workers Hoosier Park employs, it generates $55 million a year -- or 25 per cent of the county's tourism spending -- and supports 1,140 of the area's 3,710 tourism jobs.

Click here to the read the indystar.com article in its entirety.

(With files from indystar.com)