WhiteSand Gaming points to most profitable locales
A consulting firm tells the Maine legislature the state has room for a third casino. WhiteSand Gaming, commissioned last spring to study the issue for lawmakers, has concluded that Maine could sustain a new casino and resort facility in the southern part of the state.
Researchers also said there could be room for yet another gaming hall if developers think small. A good location would be near the Canadian border in Aroostook or Washington counties, the study said.
WhiteSand recommended that potential casino operators be required to invest a minimum of $250 million in any new facility and pay $5 million for a five-year operating license. In addition, the firm urged the state to set annual requirements for capital improvements and a $250,000 license renewal fee for all casinos operating in Maine, not just the new facilities.
WhiteSand also advised lawmakers to create a uniform tax rate for the state’s casinos. The two already in operation, Hollywood Casino in Bangor and Oxford Casino, operate under markedly different revenue distribution schemes, the News reported.
“At this juncture, with two commercial casinos operating, is expansion just a means of addressing an immediate fiscal problem, or is the state interested in integrating a gaming sector into its long-term development plans?” the report reads. “Is it about jobs? Is it about tourism? Or is it a combination of these goals?”
Some tribes in Maine that have sought for many years to open or expand gaming operations are pinning their hopes on the WhiteSand report.
The state’s two existing casinos, in Oxford and Bangor, oppose more gaming in the state, saying that any profits would come out of their operations.
That report suggested that a tribe should operate the northernmost casino, which could, it said create $18 million annual in revenue.
The Passamaquoddy Tribe and the Houlton Band of Maliseet Indians greeted that suggestion with enthusiasm. Passamaquoddy Chief Clayton commented, “We will eventually get a casino. We are very patient… At times, a little angry, and most of the time, disappointed… but the one thing that nobody will be able to take away from us tribal members is our culture.”
The tribe claims that a casino in Houlton would create up to 600 construction and 150 permanent jobs. The report suggests that the most appropriate size for such a casino would be 250 slots and ten gaming tables.
