Interest Increases in Toronto Casino Proposal
Onex Corporation, which owns and operates the Tropicana hotel and casino in Las Vegas and also four casinos in Canada, is the latest company to throw its hat into the ring to build a casino in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA).
The head of Onex, Gerald Schwartz, who is one of wealthiest people in Canada and has been described as one of the country's most prolific deal-makers, spoke to The Globe and Mail.
Schwartz said that they were familiar with casino operations including the importance of customer service. Referring to the province's lottery corporation's plans for a new GTA casino, Schwartz said that Onex would "definitely be interested in one or more locations. It's a growth market."
Onex Tight-lipped About Toronto Casino Proposal
Since the proposed locations are not known and the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation (OLG) has not revealed any other details, Schwartz said that it was too early for Onex to discuss any specifics about the potential proposal.
Onex has competition from at least two land casino giants, Caesars Entertainment and MGM Resorts International, who are already making their presence felt in the city.
James Murren, the chairman and chief executive officer of MGM, and his senior executives met the mayor Councillor Doug Ford, Councillor Michael Thompson who is the chair of the economic development committee and Councillor Mark Grimes who is the chair of Exhibition Place about two weeks ago. It was reported as a courtesy call and a statement of interest.
A development team from Caesars also scouted Toronto last week to identify plausible locations for a resort casino. Caesars' executives did not meet with city officials, but will participate in the process of bidding for a casino in Toronto.
Authorities Will Not Force New Casino on Toronto
OLG is likely to issue a request for information shortly in order to gauge interest in five or six potential sites in GTA. However, the authorities will not force a land casino on the Toronto residents against their wishes. At the moment the Councillors are grappling with two anti-casino motions.
The first would prohibit a casino from Ontario Place and the second would not allow a casino in the city without a referendum during the next municipal election in 2014. The Council may be divided on this issue, but the mayor has a clear mind. He said that he supports the casinos because of the well paying jobs that they would create. He was unwilling to identify locations that he personally favoured.
The Finance Minister Dwight Duncan and OLG Chairman Paul Godfrey did not have any such reservations. They have gone on record stating that they would prefer a luxurious resort casino on Toronto's waterfront with a "golden mile" of shops, restaurants and entertainment venues.
