The British Columbia Lottery Corporation has selected the city of Victoria over Saanich as the preferred local government to host a new gaming facility for the region.
The corporation also confirmed that the Great Canadian Gaming Corp.’s View Royal Casino will remain the primary gaming operation in Greater Victoria.
The size and scope of the new facility, for which business proposals have yet to be tendered, will depend on a redevelopment of the View Royal, the corporation stated.
Plans to remake the View Royal Casino have been in the works since 2008 but were shelved after the recession hit. The improved economy has seen those plans rekindled, but Great Canadian wanted more certainty about what BCLC envisioned for Greater Victoria before it would move forward with a proposal, according to Jim Keeling, who heads stakeholders relations and responsible gaming for Great Canadian.
“We just needed more definition about what’s going on in the marketplace,” he said.
The proposed casino would complement View Royal’s operations and was selected among several expressions for interest.
BCLC President and CEO Jim Lightbody in a statement said the new casino would provide a completely new gaming experience and create more entertainment options in Greater Victoria.
A recent market assessment indicates British Columbia can support another gaming operation, and six local units had the opportunity to express interest in hosting the future gaming site.
Following a BCLC assessment that indicated room for growth in the gambling industry in Greater Victoria, the corporation shortlisted Victoria and Saanich from five expressions of interest submitted late last year by local jurisdictions. With uncertainty over how large a facility BCLC hoped to see built, and Saanich indicating potential sites around its Uptown and Burnside-Tillicum areas, View Royal Mayor David Screech and other advocates of the View Royal Casino sprang into action, arguing that such plans had potential to cut heavily into the casino’s business.
“There seems to be an understanding that they will build the (Victoria) facility in such a way that will protect both markets,” Screech said. “I think it’s a win-win for everybody.”
There is currently no land zoned to allow a casino in Victoria and city policy also prohibits a stand-alone casino, stipulating that such a facility must be an extension of an existing business, such as a hotel. Unless City Council changes that policy, a downtown site would almost certainly be smaller than the expanded casino in View Royal.
Requests for proposals from Victoria operators will follow once Great Canadian makes its redevelopment plans known.
“It’s full steam ahead in terms of us trying to clarify and define what we will be proposing to BCLC,” Keeling said.
