Gaming Centre - BINGO!

By 250 News

This is the block the City of Prince George has  approved  as the site for the new Gaming Centre.

The change of location for the Good Time Bingo Hall has been approved.  As long as the BC Lotteries Corporation gives the green light  the Good Time Bingo Hall will be allowed to move from  the current location at 4th and Victoria, to  the site you see above which will encompass the block from  6th to 7th Avenues along Quebec Street.  The City  has sold the site to Otter Properties for $1.209 million. 

The "Deal"

The deal has Otter Properties paying for the demolition of existing buildings and picking up half the tab ($70,000) for environmental remediation of the lot.  Otter Properties would also build an underground parkade, although the City would pick up the tab which has been revised to $3 million dollars.  The funding to come from  the off street parking reserve fund ($1.50 million) and the balance to come from the Downtown Development fund which will be topped up with proceeds from the  sale of Recreation Place.  City Manager George Paul says the sale of the Recreation Place lands has resulted in $2 million dollars being held in trust for the City. 

The Gaming Centre project is pegged to have a value of $12 to $15 million dollars, and  if construction started tomorrow it would take one year to  complete.  It calls for 26 thousand square feet for the gaming centre, 6 townhomes and 600 square feet of retail that will be designated for National Tilden car rentals.

Engineer David McWalter of L&M Engineering says the parking  lot would be constructed for the benefit of the City of Prince George, and will not be for the benefit of the gaming centre.  The Gaming centre will have 57 parking stalls on the street level.

McWalter says he thinks it will be a major catalyst for the regeneration of Downtown Prince George.

The building will carry a "Northern Wilderness" theme  which will showcase  Native and naturalist art.

Opposition

The approval didn’t come without lots of discussion. Opposing the move was the Community Planning Council.  Alex Michelos , the Chair of the Community Planning Council made the presentation:

• no evidence to support the claim from the B.C. Lotteries Corporation that a Gaming Centre will revitalize Bingo. The Planning Council says the BC Lotteries Corp noted bingo was still healthy in Prince George so they question the need to "revitalize"
• the location is inappropriate. The Planning Council says while Council may think the location is the "heart of the City’s Cultural Centre" The CPC doesn’t see  a gaming centre as a natural fit with an art gallery,  Public Library, Civic and Convention Centre.
• Presence of Security Guards.  They worry the presence of security guards will send a negative image of the safety in the downtown core.
• need for social impact assessments and a public consultation on the gaming facility policy

The Days Inn opposes the centre on two major counts,  first, there are worries their parking will be lost to gaming centre patrons especially when the Spruce Kings are playing.  There is also a concern about noise.  The Day’s Inn owner said "Imagine this; its 1:30 in the morning, and 600 people spill out from the gaming centre, 600 people are making noise, 600 people are starting their cars. I don’t think this will be acceptable to patrons who are trying to sleep."

Peter Thompson, the Managing Director of the Art Gallery says he realizes the facility could bring more people into the downtown, but parking is a major concern as there are already parking challenges in the area when there is a major event underway at the Civic Centre.  Still, he anticipates being a "good neighbour" to the development.

Another hotelier said while he wasn't speaking on behalf of his company he doesn't think the facility would have any benefit to downtown.  He suggested the project be moved to outside of town.

Investigation:

Once again Councilor Brian Skakun withdrew from the discussion.  As in the past when the gaming centre has been brought before Council,  Councillor Skakun reiterated that he believed he was offered an inappropriate campaign contribution which he perceived was linked to the gaming centre.  Steve Wilment took to the centre table and asked that Council not make any decision on gambling based on questions about election donation impropriety.  "I think it is deplorable that we are even thinking about it" he told Council. Mayor Kinsley said campaign contribution disclosure documents are available for viewing on the 5th floor, and he assured Mr. Wilment that no one on Council is under any kind of police investigation  concerning campaign contributions.

Gaming Details

The new gaming centre will offer 660 bingo gaming seats and 100 slot machines.  That will bring to 500 the number of slot machines in Prince George.  Owner John Major says they would like to start with 75 slot machines, but would like to have the flexibility to  expand to 100.

Here is how Prince George will compare with other cities where there are both casinos and gaming centres:

Dollars turned over to Communities  through Gaming,  1st Quarter Fiscal Year 2006/2007

In support of the facility, the presentations to Council included letters and presentations from various community groups and charities, all of whom stand to benefit financially from a successful  gaming centre.  The charities are guaranteed $50 thousand a year from the slot profits in addition to the share of the Bingo revenue.

Moving:

Otter Properties’  John Major says he has reached an agreement with the United Way and would be able to wait 6 months until United Way could find a new building before demolishing, although Major says the United Way has a line on some sites and might be able to move as early as the end of October.  Major also indicated Otter Properties would help with moving costs for the United Way and other charities in that facility.  He also told Council his company will cover some of the costs  for the Crisis Intervention centre so  the burden of re-establishing phone lines will be minimized.  Major made it clear that while his construction team would build the underground parkade,  if there are any cost overruns, he would cover those costs.

Security

On matters of security, Major says  panhandling has not been an issue, Goodtime Bingo has not allowed that kind of activity at the existing site and will continue with that.  In fact, Director of Operations at Treasure Cove Casino Steve Leach (former Prince George RCMP Detachment Superintendant) produced a report which said the RCMP Detachment in Prince George responded to an average of 7.7 service calls per month relating to criminal matters reported by Casino Hollywood. That casino no longer exists, but Leach says it was in the downtown.  The majority of calls related to counterfeit bills but also included criminal disturbances, assaults, theft and impaired drivers. According to Leach a large number of the calls were actually about things going on at businesses near Casino Hollywood.

Problem Gambling:

B.C. Lotteries Corporation says problem gambling is significantly higher in Northern B.C. than in the rest of the province.  The provincial average for those with "problems" is 4.6% while in the North, the rate is 10.2%   There is a gaming centre in Dawson Creek, and similar projects underway in Prince Rupert and Fort St John.  There is also one more northern community that has a bingo hall and is exploring the possibiity of changing to a gaming centre.    B.C. Lotteries Corp says the Province has made a committment that if the current funds set aside to pay for counsellors for treatment is used, more dollars will be made available. City Councilor Debora Munoz says the funds amount to about $23 dollars per family.

Downtown Benefit

Centre City Ventures, the downtown development arm of Initiatives Prince George stands behind the project saying it will bring people back to the downtown core especially in the evening. That will have spill off for restaurants and businesses. That feeling was echoed by Brent Stone.  He used to work in the  downtown area and noted if parking was a concern, "Take the bus, use the new public transit,  if there are so many people spilling on to the streets, then they will get a room and the rooms will be full, I would rather turn people away from my establishment than be standing there at the door trying to find a customer".

How They Voted:

Brian Skakun:  Excused  himself because of concerns over campaign contributions

Murry Krause:  Absent

Don Bassermann:  YES    Thinks the project is forward looking. "This proposal will likely attract considerable further development in the downtown core"

Don Zurowski:    YES   From my point of view, is there any indication slots are more problematic than bingo?  I don't hear anything that would  suggest that.  He thinks the design is sensitive to the area, and supports the land use. "This is entertainment and what would our attitude be if this were a performing arts centre?"

Sherry Sethen:   YES     "It gives me comfort to know the proponent has a proven track record, he has been very generous in adressing the concerns of the community.  The concerns and doubts I had entering into this discussion have been minimized by the care and concern that have been demonstrated tonight"

Shirley Gratton:  YES    "I'm very excited about this presentation that will bring a brand new building to downtown, to capture the planters and the river rock and hopefully the beetle wood columns would have carving on them."

Glen Scott:  YES  "I've made some notes,  15 million dollar project, 60 -70 jobs and the one thing I really think we have to look at,  this is oneof the most exciting times we have seen in a long time,  we have a leading engineering firm moves downtown, 7th and Victoria, that's another positive step for downtown, the old Vienna Shnitzel house is being renovated, the Food Teller has been bought and something will go in there,  so the urban reviatalization has started."

Deborah Munoz  NO  "I consider myself a forward thinker but not at any cost."  "Placing a gaming facility next door to a residential property is not a wise decision."  "The short term economic gains willbe far outweighed by the long term social  impact." 

Mayor Colin Kinsley   YES  "Everything about this project fits into the vision of the City and that is to grow the tax base."  "This is a catlayst for further development, there will be developers looking at the decision today to see what the political will is."

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