“You’d have to do a spinal search of the major parties to discover any backbone.”
—Tim Costello, Australian anti-gambling campaigner, on the lack of concern about the renewal of the Crown Casinos license in Victoria for its Melbourne property
“For years, many athletic leagues in this country have wisely opposed allowing wagers on their teams or their players, arguing that gambling threatens the integrity of their sports. Betting on games would hurt professional teams and certainly wouldn’t guarantee better times in Atlantic City.”
—Editorial in the New York Times criticizing New Jersey Governor Chris Christie’s announcement that the state will now permit Atlantic City casinos and New Jersey racetracks to offer sports betting
“I feel horribly for the employees here. For our owners, this is a very valuable piece of property.” In all likelihood, it can be redeveloped. “They will be fine. I will be fine.”
—Chip Tuttle, chief operating officer of Suffolk Downs racetrack in Revere, over the decision by the Massachusetts Gaming Commission to award the license for the Boston Metro area to Wynn MA LLC.
“Gratuitous insults such as characterizing the building as ‘atrocious’ severely undermine the professionalism and credibility of the report,” the company said.
—Wynn Resorts, reacting to a report by the Massachusetts Gaming Commission criticizing the design of its proposed 27-story tower in Everett
“Mayor Walsh’s responsibility now is to use the commission’s mitigation package as a baseline to negotiate the best deal he can get, and Wynn’s is to invest in building relationships with the city that may soon be his neighbor.”
—Editorial, Boston Globe, commenting on the traffic mitigation agreement that Steve Wynn and Boston Mayor Martin J. Walsh have yet to reach for Wynn’s Everett casino
“To hoodwink voters into approving one of the sweetest casino deals ever handed out in the United States, Gilbert and his partner, Penn National Gaming, orchestrated a $47 million campaign that promised millions in taxes for schools and local governments.”
—Brent Larkin, accusing Dan Gilbert and Penn National Gaming of having fooled voters in 2009 to approve casinos they knew wouldn’t be as profitable and jobs-generating as promised
“Since we endorsed gaming on tribal land, I know tribes who have played by the rules, constructing on their original reservation and respecting the voters’ wishes. Now other tribes and out-of- say gaming investors are seeking to break these rules.”
— Cheryl Schmit, executive director of Stand Up for California, a casino watchdog group, urging a no vote on Prop. 48, which would allow the North Fork Tribe to build an off-reservation casino
“The FOP wants to protect our citizens and the best way to do this is to drive black market online gaming into the light and scrutiny of a regulated system that is safe, fun and fair. Regulation and licensing is the only way to put consumer protections in place. Right now, everyone in California that plays poker online is doing it through unlicensed, overseas websites. They could become the victim of fraud or unwittingly be contributing to an organized criminal operation. States should regulate and control gaming within their own borders.”
—Roger Mayberry, president of the California State Lodge of the Fraternal Order of Police in an op-ed piece for California’s Capitol Weekly.
“I think you should look at a casino as frosting on the cake, not the cake. When you think about the stability of a community, it’s all those smaller businesses that provide 25 jobs, 50 jobs, 75 jobs all around the city that create the real strength of the city. A casino is great. I’m doing everything under my power to get it, but we cannot let down on these other things.”
?Judy L. Kennedy, mayor, Newburgh, Orange County, New York, one of the 16 communities in New York that could win a Class III casino license
