The Ontario Liberal Government's desires to plop a major casino down in the Greater Toronto Area are getting tougher and tougher as the days go by. Staunch Mississauga Mayor Hazel McCallion is the latest leader to be extremely skeptical in regard to the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corp.'s craving to erect a massive casino complex in the GTA.
According to a report by the Toronto Sun, Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty asked Mayor McCallion about the possibility of the expansion within Mississauga's borders Thursday, June 7 at Queen's Park.
“I don’t know of a site in Mississauga that could accommodate a casino based on the information that (OLG Chairman) Paul Godfrey gave me when he came out to visit me a number of weeks ago, because, as I understand it, they want a major entertainment section --- it’s not just a casino.”
The article did quote Mayor McCallion as saying that she would "go to the people" before making any decisions regarding casino expansion in the bustling suburb west of Toronto.
The report did contain an interesting quote from Mayor McCallion, as she was quoted as saying, "I’m sure they’re (the OLG are) looking at the Woodbine (Racetrack) --- they have a lot of land --- but that’s not in Mississauga."
Another report, this one by 680 News, has quoted Mayor McCallion as saying, "I know of nobody in that area (Mississauga) that is interested in allocating their property to a casino There's no assembly of land that would deal with what they have in mind for a major entertainment section."
The 680 News report has also quoted Mayor McCallion as saying, "I'm not chasing a casino because we don't own land --- the City of Mississauga --- that could allocate it to, and we have very little vacant land… for the type of plan that is in the works." Mississauga does have bingo halls within its borders.
After having received a report by a John Tory-led panel this week, the Ontario Liberals begrudgingly accepted the advisement that the provincially-owned Ontario Place, located on Toronto's waterfront, should not become home to a casino complex, much to the chagrin of Godfrey and Ontario Minister of Finance Dwight Duncan, who have let their desires for the location be more than well known.
Sounds like a number of
Sounds like a number of communities are not interested in a casino! Perhaps Woodbine can leverage the fact, snag a casino and force concessions for the rest of the tracks?