|
|
W.Va. resort will consider gambling after ballot
After voters approve gambling, W.Va.'s Greenbrier will explore adding games to resort
NEW YORK (Associated Press) - Voters in Greenbrier County have approved gambling at a luxury resort, but now the house is holding all the cards.
The Greenbrier announced Wednesday it will hire a consultant to evaluate the prospect of casino-style gambling at the resort, which has entertained kings and presidents and housed a once-secret bomb shelter intended for Congress.
In a letter sent to all employees, resort President Andrew Fogarty said the analysis will look at the potential impact of adding gambling to the resort's other attractions.
"While we do not know what the outcome of this analysis will be, we do know that gaming would require significant investment in a challenging economy and therefore must be evaluated very carefully," Fogarty wrote in the letter.
On Tuesday, 51 percent of voters cast their ballots in favor of gambling. A similar measure was defeated in 2000.
This year, the referendum was promoted by unions representing about 1,200 workers at the resort who see gambling as a way to boost revenues and help protect jobs and benefits.
The unions have been negotiating with the resort, which is owned by Jacksonville, Fla.-based CSX Corp., for almost 14 months. Talks have snagged on issues like health insurance premiums and pension benefits.
Negotiators for the nine unions at the resort have said The Greenbrier lost $39 million between 2003 and 2007, and expects losses in the millions for 2008.
In September, the union took the unprecedented step of asking the Greenbrier County Commission to have the gambling question put on the ballot.
"It's an economic development issue, and I'm glad The Greenbrier is at least looking at the possibility," Commissioner Brad Tuckwiller, who supported the referendum, said Wednesday.
The margin of its 2000 defeat was much wider, but this year the union support likely made the difference, he said.
"I expected there'd be a swing because of the empathy with the workers at The Greenbrier, and also a realization that as The Greenbrier goes, so goes Greenbrier County," he said.
Peter Bostic, one of the union leaders negotiating with the resort, said Wednesday the voters have given The Greenbrier an opportunity to bring in new revenue.
"We hope CSX will run with this new business opportunity," he said.
Opponents this time were represented primarily by churches, who tried to cast doubt on gambling's economic benefits. But with less than two months to organize between the commission's vote and Election Day, opponents didn't have the kind of time or resources that helped them in 2000.
A call to the Rev. Mark Flynn, a United Methodist pastor who helped organize opposition, was not immediately returned Wednesday.
The resort, which opened in the 18th century and employs about 1,600 people in all, is the largest employer in the county and a major economic engine in the area, boosting everything from other hotels to restaurants, shops and the local airport.
There is no other U.S. model for what The Greenbrier is considering, said industry consultant Cory Morowitz, chairman of New Jersey-based Morowitz Gaming Advisors LLC. Pennsylvania, however, does plan to license two hotels for slot machine casinos that would be open only to guests.
"Is it feasible? Yeah. It's another amenity in a very nice upscale resort that people would probably want to partake in," Morowitz said Wednesday. "It's a nice resort with guests who are used to spending a lot of money."
Morowitz said gambling might not necessarily be a good fit for The Greenbrier, which has traditionally been seen as popular with members of the old Southern gentry, who appreciate its relaxed atmosphere.
However, table games do tend to draw younger gamblers, Morowitz said, so if the resort is looking to change its demographic, a casino may be worth considering.
"If they're looking to expand the market they appeal to, table games would help," he said. "It just depends on the total brand to sell it."
The state law that enabled the referendum is so narrow it essentially only allows gambling at The Greenbrier, and specifies that games would be limited to guests at the resort, where rooms start at around $500 a night.
Since 2000, other state laws allowed referendum votes that brought casino-style gambling to racetracks in Kanawha, Hancock and Ohio counties. |
|
发表于 2008-11-9 05:04