Putting the largest casino in Western Canada in downtown Vancouver will hurt the six casinos in suburban Metro Vancouver, which local municipalities depend on for public works projects, several mayors said Thursday.
With little or no documentation being provided by the B.C. Lottery Corp. or Paragon Gaming to allay their concerns, the mayors said they believe their cities' share of casino proceeds
"While a new casino will attract new gamblers, it will also siphon off some of the business from [Richmond's] River Rock and other suburban casinos," said Richmond Mayor Malcolm Brodie. "There has to be a negative financial impact. That is a very great concern for us."
Municipalities with casinos get a small share of revenues to use as they see fit. Most put it aside for capital projects, although Vancouver puts its roughly $7 million a year entirely into its annual operating budget.
Last year the municipalities of Richmond, Coquitlam, New Westminster, Surrey, Langley City and Burnaby received a total of $46.4 million from their casinos, according to BCLC's annual report. Since 2000, B.C. municipalities with casinos have received more than $580 million in revenue-sharing agreements.
The provincial government's dependence on gambling revenues has also grown proportionately. Since the late 1990s, when the NDP government expanded gambling and gave BCLC responsibility for casinos, the province has seen its proceeds of total BCLC revenues rise from about $250 million a year to more than $1 billion in 2010. That increase came largely from the introduction of slot machines, going from just over 2,300 machines in 2000 to more than 9,400 last year.
Now, with a 1,500-slot, 150table casino proposed for BC Place, some politicians are wondering if there is a limit to all this expansion.
"I have a concern about the capacity for gambling revenue [in the Lower Mainland]. I think there is a limit," said Coquitlam Mayor Richard Stewart, who wants proof "the impact won't lead to revenues from the suburbs being dragged back downtown."
Stewart said he's tried unsuccessfully to get information from BCLC about how the new Edgewater would affect Coquitlam's casino, which generates $8.8 million annually for the municipality. "We're struggling to find the unbiased analysis of whether in fact it will have an impact."
Both BCLC and Paragon, which owns the Edgewater, claim the casino will not siphon off gamblers from other casinos.
Instead, they're banking on creating new customers from people living nearby, from international visitors and those attending events at BC Place. BCLC said in a statement that market analysis shows most of Edgewater's current customers come from the northern and eastern parts of Vancouver.
"Aside from normal player movement between facilities in the Lower Mainland which occurs based on marketing and promotions and player preferences, significant cannibalization is not expected," BCLC said. "This same study estimates revenue will come primarily from within the City of Vancouver, surrounding municipalities, and the tourist market potential."
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