Peninsula Pacific Entertainment recently presented a public program on its proposed $250 million casino near Slidell, Louisiana. Residents of St. Tammany Parish would have to approve the casino in a parish-wide referendum. At the public meeting, attendees could suggest names for the casino and desired amenities. “They get you to buy in,” said a St. Tammany Parish businesswoman.
For the casino to become a reality, the Louisiana legislature would have to agree to put the issue on the ballot for a parish-wide referendum.
Peninsula Pacific held two sessions; the second was limited to residents of Lakeshore Estates, a walled community of about 400 houses that are the closest to the proposed casino site. Besides the look of the casino, attendees asked about traffic, security and the casino’s impact on property values.
One Lakeshore Estates resident said he had concerns over auto and boat traffic. Another was worried about noise if an outdoor amphitheater was built at the casino complex. An attendee said he was told by a Peninsula Pacific official that the company may pay for a sheriff’s office substation in the neighborhood.
Attendees also could voice their opinion on whether they preferred the casino to look like a woodland lodge, a tropical resort or a modern brick structure.
