Earlier this week a report was released by Ernst and Young, which suggested that Toronto could reap almost $250 million a year by offering a casino on city land. The amount would be less if it was hosted off city land but would likely still be significant. That money could be used for infrastructure, public housing and even subways. Currently there are 5 parties interested in owning and operating the casino. They include MGM Resorts, Caesar's Entertainment, Oxford Properties, Las Vegas Sands Corporation and Woodbine Entertainment.

The plans and preferred locations of each operator are different. MGM's preferred plan is to build an Integrated Resort at Exhibition Place; Oxford Properties and Caesar's want to build the casino at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre; Las Vegas Sands has given no indication where they would build it although they seem to be leaning to the convention centre or perhaps the port lands; and Woodbine wants to build the casino on its vast racetrack property. Woodbine already has a slots agreement with the Ontario government but the partnership agreement is set to expire and convert to a tenant/lease agreement this year. That will cut significantly into Woodbine's revenues so Woodbine Entertainment is hoping to offer additional forms of gambling to augment those losses. The one advantage for Woodbine is that they are already zoned for gambling but it doesn't appear the provincial government is keen to see a large resort built at the racetrack. It's expected the provincial government may appease Woodbine Entertainment by allowing them to operate a small casino somewhere on their property in the future but the resort casino will have to be built elsewhere.

The question that has to be asked, therefore, is whether the city would be best served with a casino at the port lands, the current convention centre or Exhibition Place. While the port lands have been mentioned the truth is that there is little chance of a casino being built there. There are already major development plans for that area including the building of venues for the 2015 Pan Am Games. Another consideration is that the soil at the port lands won't allow for a parking garage and Waterfront Toronto has stated they don't want a casino built there. The councillor representing the port lands, Paula Fletcher, is also vehemently opposed to a casino. The convention centre brings a whole host of problems. First, there is little parking available and it would create traffic nightmares. Congestion in the area is already a concern given that the Air Canada Centre, the Rogers Centre and Union Station are all in the vicinity and the proposed casino would just add to those concerns. Additionally, there is really no way to build up or out or to create a quick pedestrian link from Union Station to the convention centre because the air space over Union Station is owned by CN and CP railways and there's no indication that either railway company wants to give up the air space to allow for a large bridge. And if they do indeed agree to relinquish those rights, the fee would be substantial. More importantly a casino at the convention centre would do nothing to help promote tourism and beautify the city. The convention centre is effectively an enclosed building connected by a hotel on one side and the CN Tower on the other. There is really nothing that can be done in the area to help create an atmosphere that would benefit Toronto. More importantly, casinos in convention centres rarely work. In Niagara Falls, New York, the Seneca Indians built a casino at the convention centre and it has done little for the city. The Seneca casino is a underwhelming building with a hotel attached that attracts very few tourists and the area remains run down. Other cities have seen similar results. On the Canadian side of the falls, on the other hand, the Fallsview Resort casino attracts millions of tourists each year, has provided substantial revenue for the city and has helped beautify the Fallsview area, which only a decade ago was a run down ghost town.

That brings us to Exhibition Place and MGM Resort's proposal to spend up to $4 billion to build a resort casino there. I spoke to Steve Wolstenholme, the Canadian representative for MGM resorts, and he was happy to give me some indication of the company's casino vision. "We want to create an integrated resort that Torontonians will be proud of," Wolstenholme said. "We don't just want to just offer a box of slots." Wolstenholme added that MGM's vision would see a hotel, a world class entertainment venue and dining. The casino space would take up less than 10% of the venue but is an integral part of the plans. At the same time MGM wants to work with existing hotels and restaurants to ensure that all local businesses in Toronto benefit. "Maybe one time someone would stay at our hotel and the next time they would go to a partner hotel in the city. We would encourage that." Wolstenholme also acknowledged that the CNE is a Toronto legacy and MGM would prefer to incorporate the history of the CNE into the development. That would mean keeping Rico Coliseum, BMO Field and the Metro Trade Centre and MGM would likely work with the Toronto Marlies and Toronto FC soccer teams to help promote their products as well. As for parking and transportation, MGM is willing to do whatever it must to ensure that those issues will not be a concern. "The free flow of traffic is essential to the success of the resort, and MGM wants to ensure that happens. We want to be part of the solution," Wolstenholme said. In fact the comment "we want to be part of the solution," was stated throughout the interview. Whether it means helping create a fast link from Union Station to the CNE grounds, whether it means creating a private-public partnership on subways, or whether it means offering courses at local colleges to help create industry jobs, MGM Resorts plans to be part of that solution. And the company has the resources and experience to do so.

MGM also wants to make sure that the surroundings of the integrated resort are appealing and thus believes that the beautification of Ontario Place should be incorporated into the project. Consequently MGM's vision would see a green space at Ontario Place and a large family area. That is precisely what John Tory, who was given the job of deciding what to do with Ontario Place, has stated he would like to see. Again the redesign of the surrounding areas and creating a family friendly environment at Ontario Place is being considered as part of the solution.

There has been some concern stated by councillors and special interest groups that a Toronto resort casino would result in a situation similar to Atlantic City but as Wolstenholme pointed out the two models are totally different. Atlantic City was designed to create a plethora of gaming facilities in a small area to generate as much visitation and revenue as possible while MGM's vision for Toronto is a single casino in a large integrated resort that would be a welcome sight to Torontonians and tourists alike. Wolstenholme suggested that if council wanted to truly compare the Toronto vision to other cities they should look at Singapore, Sydney or Melbourne where the casino is a part of the whole landscape and is integrated within those cities. There have also been some suggestions that the Toronto casino would create issues with crime, prostitution and drugs but those concerns are unfounded according to many studies referenced in the recently published Ernst and Young report. Niagara Falls, Orillia, Windsor, Montreal, Halifax, Winnipeg etc. all have casinos and those issues have never materialized. This after all is 2012, not Las Vegas in 1950. There is no question that the Parkdale neighbourhood, where the Exhibition Place is located, has a problem with drugs and crime but the casino resort would probably help alleviate some of those issues through massive job creation. After all beautification and cleaning up of the area would have to expand to the local neighbourhood too.

The Ernst and Young report did note a concern by the Ministry of Health that a casino could increase the amount of people who develop gambling problems and while that is a concern people in Toronto already have numerous methods to gamble. Lotteries and racetrack slots are available and supported by all levels of government and Casino Niagara or Rama aren't far away. Moreover, gambling is available online to Torontonians unimpeded. Although not technically legal, online gambling isn't illegal in Canada either and millions of Canadians wager online each day at offshore sportsbooks, poker rooms and casinos. And unfortunately not one dime of that betting is going into the Canadian economy. It's for that reason the Ontario government has created its modernization plan that would include legal and regulated online gambling in the next year as well as single game sports betting. More importantly, MGM, having been in the business for decades, has developed several mechanisms for identifying and stopping underage bettors and problem gamblers and they would teach their employees how to spot and stop those individuals. The Ontario government would still be the regulator and would demand it as they do at the other casinos. And certainly MGM would gladly contribute to organizations like Gamblers Anonymous, after all that's being a part of the solution.

The decision on whether Toronto wants to host a casino now wrests with Toronto council. The MGM casino would create upwards of 5,000 construction jobs and approximately 8000 jobs at the resort. "And these are good, well paying jobs too," Wolstenholme said. The resort is expected to take 3-4 years to build but would hopefully be done with minimal disruptions. Mayor Rob Ford wants the casino in Toronto as do many citizens but many of councillors currently do not. The province has stated that they would not force a casino on any city that doesn't want it but councillors have to look at the potential revenue from all the casino proposals and truly decide what is best for the city. And they need to do so without the silly misconceptions that it would lead to red light districts or an increase in gang activity. If the councillors did their homework and looked at the facts they would conclude that this is an opportunity that Toronto just can't pass up. And of all the casino proposals, MGM's vision is by far and away the best for all Toronto residents.

Contact Hartley via email at Hartley[at]osga[dot]com.

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