Grand Forks, BC Pushing for Casino
The city council in Grand Forks, BC heard a proposal to introduce a casino near its industrial area which would keep some of the money lost to other gambling entities inside the region.
According to a resident of Grand Forks, Dan Norton, who brought the proposal to the city council's attention, together with Bob Smith who spearheaded the original idea at the end of the l990's, around $4 million is leaving the city each year to the British Columbia Lottery Corporation in lottery tickets.
Norton believes that at least 10% of the casino revenues would be channeled back into the city to benefit the population.
"That's going to help lower taxes, utilities, plus allow them some extra money to do some improvements," said Norton.
"It's a win-win situation for everybody."
The proposal notes that the new casino would be housed in the Pavilion of the industrial park and would offer a good range of gambling entertainment opportunities, including card tables and slot machines.
Should the proposal be approved by the city council, it will still need to go through an approval process by the BCLC.
The mayor of Grand Forks, Brian Taylor, is generally supportive of taking the proposal to the next level, but has asked Norton and Smith to create a more detailed plan with which to work so that decisions could be made.
