The British Columbia Lottery Corporation announced a 42,000 expansion project at the View Royal Casino, which would double its current size. Set to open in the first half of 2018, the upgrade will offer a 600-seat entertainment venue, 350 additional slot machines and electronic games, new table games added to the current 15, a buffet and casual lounge/bar. The exterior walls and roof will be demolished. No project cost has been released.
Opened in 2001, the View Royal is operated by the Great Canadian Gaming Corporation. It generated $71.8 million in revenue in the 2015-16 fiscal year. Seven area municipalities benefited from a distribution of $4.1 million, with View Royal and Langford receiving 45 per cent each from that total, about $1.8 million each. View Royal Mayor David Screech said the money is mainly used for capital projects.
Regarding the casino expansion, Screech said, “I’m really glad to see that they’ve actually got it underway.” He stated BCLC has committed to the View Royal casino being the “destination gaming facility” in the region. “We’re going to see a real destination, sort of mini-River Rock Casino type of idea,” he said.
A $20 million expansion plan at View Royal was put on hold in 2015 when the BCLC said it was considering a second local casino. Since then, BCLC announced a second casino possibly could be built at an undetermined site in Victoria, which was chosen over other applicants because it has “the greatest opportunity to capture the existing untapped market” in the southeast part of the region, BCLC officials said.
They added, “Once an operator/service provider is selected, they will be responsible for finding an appropriate location and property within the boundaries of the city of Victoria. An appropriate location and would consider access from major arterials, available square footage, available parking and must be approved by BCLC. At that time BCLC will work with the service provider to develop a casino for the city of Victoria’s approval.”
Under city policy, casinos may not be standalone developments but must be combined with something else, such as a hotel. And under terms of the Gaming Control Act, community input would be necessary regarding the casino design. The local government would have the final approval.
