\nSARATOGA SPRINGS >> The City Council\u2019s unanimous vote against expanded casino gaming in the city means different things to different people \u2014 even to the commissioners themselves.<\/p>\n
\tFor city Public Works Commissioner Anthony \u201cSkip\u201d Scirocco, the vote \u201csends the right message.\u201d<\/p>\n
\t\u201cI want Albany to get the message loud and clear that Saratoga Springs says \u2018No\u2019\u201d to expanded table gaming, he said.<\/p>\n
\tAccounts Commissioner John Franck believes the resolution leaves the ultimate question open.<\/p>\n
\t\u201cI think there is language here where this is still a fluid situation,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\tMayor Joanne Yepsen, who drafted the resolution, indicated it leaves room for negotiation.<\/p>\n
\t\u201cUntil they start building partnerships and offering the community how they are going to address the needs that are in the community, this is a \u2018No,\u2019\u201d she said. \u201cSo the ball is in their court.\u201d<\/p>\n
\tThe resolution stated the City Council\u2019s \u201copposition to the Upstate New York Gaming Economic Development Act as it relates to a destination resort casino being placed in the city of Saratoga Springs.\u201d<\/p>\n
\tThe resolution outlined potential conflicts with the city\u2019s interests an expanded casino could represent, including competition with downtown businesses and the City Center, inadequate protection of harness track racing and a lack of local oversight.<\/p>\n
\tA crowd of more than 300 people attended Tuesday night\u2019s meeting, split down the middle of the Music Hall along the rift the issue created.<\/p>\n
\tOn the left side of the room sat those wearing the red shirts of Saratogians Against Vegas-style Gaming; on the right side were the Destination Saratoga supporters, wearing the white shirts of the casino-funded organization supporting expanded gaming.<\/p>\n
\tAfter the vote, the SAVE Saratoga crowd was jubilant, but both sides claimed victory.<\/p>\n
\t\u201cThe people over here are all excited about this, they didn\u2019t say \u2018no\u2019 to anything,\u201d said Destination Saratoga Co-Chair Dan Hogan after the vote. He said it \u201ctotally\u201d leaves the door open for a casino to still be located in the city, something he is optimistic about.<\/p>\n
\t\u201cIn the resolution they said \u2018Let\u2019s wait for the (Requests for Application)\u2019 and they said \u2018We are opposed to the law that passed,\u2019\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\tThat was also the take of Saratoga Casino & Raceway Executive Vice President of Marketing Rita Cox.<\/p>\n
\t\u201cThey made it clear they want more information,\u201d she said. \u201cWe look forward to the day when there is an RFA and we can have an open dialogue about what is best for the city.\u201d<\/p>\n
\tThe Requests for Applications will lay out exactly what the city expects in a casino application, including the size of the casino and requirements for restaurants, hotels and event space.<\/p>\n
\tOne condition of the application is that the applicant demonstrates local support for the project.<\/p>\n
\tNew York State Gaming Commission spokesman Lee Park said the RFA will spell out exactly how that needs to be done.<\/p>\n
\tHe could not comment on what the City Council\u2019s vote will ultimately mean in the siting process.<\/p>\n
\t\u201cIt\u2019s a decision for the Facility Location Board,\u201d which will determine where the casinos will be located, he said. \u201cThey will be made aware of the vote.\u201d<\/p>\n
\tScirocco had sponsored a SAVE resolution that was vehemently opposed to a casino expansion, but he pulled it in lieu of Yepsen\u2019s because \u201cto me, it means the same thing … we oppose any expansion, that\u2019s what the resolution says.\u201d<\/p>\n
\tSAVE agrees with Scirocco.<\/p>\n
\t\u201cThe full support of the City Council rejecting a casino shows clear vision for the future of Saratoga Springs,\u201d SAVE co-founder Colin Klepetar said in a statement. \u201cWe are pleased to see that the council did not decide to wait for the RFA. It shows they understand the RFA will hold no surprises and they have presented a united front against the casino. We hope that the gaming commission, the siting board and the governor have finally realized that our community does not support siting a casino here and we hope that they will respect our collective voice.\u201d<\/p>\n
\tThe 90 minutes of public comments at the start of the meeting illustrated the divide in opinion expanded casino gaming in the Spa City has among Saratogians.<\/p>\n
\tBoth sides had their respective opinions on the economic impact an expanded casino could have on the region.<\/p>\n
\t\u201cLive casinos do not support sustainable economies,\u201d said one woman wearing a red SAVE shirt.<\/p>\n
\tShe spoke following two Saratoga Casino & Raceway employees who touted the jobs created by the casino and said expansion would bring even more.<\/p>\n
\tSome cited the city\u2019s history of gambling.<\/p>\n
\t\u201cI grew up when gambling was not this terrible thing,\u201d said Tom Spalding, a native Saratogian who retired in the city, and added that when he was a child the likes of Diamond Jim Brady and John Morrisey were heroes. \u201cThe city should not look away from the spirit of Saratoga. Respect the history and character of our community.\u201d<\/p>\n
\tOthers questioned the path in front of the city.<\/p>\n
\t\u201cPlease consider the future of my children and the future of my children\u2019s children and the long-term effects of what a full-scale casino will mean to our community,\u201d a woman in a red SAVE shirt urged the council.<\/p>\n
\tSaratoga Casino & Raceway employee Jennie Jurkiewicz said, \u201cMy 9-year-old loves our schools. My 6-year-old loves our schools. Don\u2019t kick us out. Support me; support my family; support my job.\u201d<\/p>\n
\tThere were significantly more speakers who supported the expansion of Saratoga Casino and Raceway Tuesday night, many of whom worked for the racino.<\/p>\n
\tBoth sides accused the other of fabricating facts and of making the discourse contentious.<\/p>\n
\tWith the passage of the resolution, its impact remains a question.<\/p>\n
\tSaratoga Casino & Raceway has submitted its plans for an expansion to include event space and a hotel to the city for input, but the casino\u2019s review process takes place at the state, not the local level. She said that expansion is still progressing regardless of whether the facility is licensed for table gaming.<\/p>\n
\t\u201cThere is a perception in the community that this City Council can change the law, can change the citing process … we can\u2019t,\u201d Yepsen said in proposing her resolution. She urged anyone with further comments on the issue to forward them to the state government.<\/p>\n
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SARATOGA SPRINGS >> The City Council\u2019s unanimous vote against expanded casino gaming in the city means different things to different people \u2014 even to the commissioners themselves. For city Public Works Commissioner Anthony \u201cSkip\u201d Scirocco, the vote \u201csends the right…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":36,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-7077","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-latest-casino-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumarchives.tmsites.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7077","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumarchives.tmsites.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumarchives.tmsites.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumarchives.tmsites.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/36"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumarchives.tmsites.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7077"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/forumarchives.tmsites.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7077\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumarchives.tmsites.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7077"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumarchives.tmsites.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7077"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumarchives.tmsites.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7077"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}