Being against casinos is not being against people

Being against casinos is not being against people

jsunshower | Mon, Jul 14, 2014 7:22 AM EST

Being against casinos is not being against people in the service industry, or unions, nor job creation.

Wherever casinos are built, the way they operate sucks tourism that was widely spread among local businesses to feed the mega-corporation. Very different from building other entertainment venues that attract people who will also shop at other neighborhood businesses.

“But what about jobs, the drum-beat casino proponents tout as their best argument? Casino workers’ unions across the country are embroiled in labor fights with casino owners, fighting for fair pay and even to keep what little they receive in tips. Last year, hundreds of employees quit just days after the opening of Cleveland’s new Horseshoe Casino, outraged at their excessive hours and low pay.” from article by Steve Holt in Universal Hub 3/06/2013 Here’s the Cleveland article :http://www.clevescene.com/…/lots-of-people-already-quitting

More info on negative effects for everyone in a community: http://imshttp.rapv.com/documents/CasinoResearch-NAR.pdf

Casinos and labor: the rest of the story

somervilletom | Sun, Jul 13, 2014

 

Buried in the middle of the A-section of today’s Sunday Globe is a clear demonstration of the rest of the story about casino gambling and labor. The glimpse into the future proponents would have us create is equally compelling.


First, the facts (emphasis mine):

First, the facts (emphasis mine):

ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. — Atlantic City’s crumbling casino market disintegrated even further Saturday as the owners of the Trump Plaza casino said they expect to shut down in mid-September.
Trump Entertainment Resorts said no final decision has been made on the Boardwalk casino. But the company said it expects the casino to close its doors Sept. 16.
Notices warning employees of the expected closing will go out to the casino’s 1,000-plus employees Monday.
If Trump Plaza closes, Atlantic City could lose a third of its casinos and a quarter of its casino workforce in less than nine months. The Atlantic Club closed in January, the Showboat is closing next month, and Revel might do likewise if a buyer can’t be found in bankruptcy court.

Some of us have argued here that casinos = jobs, and a significant number of Massachusetts residents seem receptive. I therefore offer the following dose of hard-nosed current reality, this time from Atlantic City today (emphasis mine):

The head of Atlantic City’s main casino workers’ union demanded state lawmakers help head off what he called a “pending catastrophe” that will affect the state’s tourism industry and tax collections.
…
The company did not indicate what might become of the building after it is closed.
Bob McDevitt, president of Local 54 of the Unite-HERE union, said 7,000 casino workers — or about one in four — have been warned their jobs could disappear within 60 days.
“While this is a personal tragedy for every family involved, it is also a crisis for the state,” he said. “We expect Trenton to react with more than just sympathetic sound bites; we demand action equal to the magnitude of this pending catastrophe.“

In short:
1. The casino industry is collapsing, especially in Atlantic City
2. When the collapse happens, it happens at catastrophic speed
3. The true equation for labor in Atlantic City today is “Casinos = Unemployed” — to the tune of SEVEN THOUSAND union workers.
4. The very first step of organized labor as the predicted collapse unfolds is to demand “help” from the state.

In my view, this is the real story of casino gambling today. Massachusetts should just say “YES” to repeal casino gambling in our state.

 

Look before you leap

Casino-Free Milford

MORGANELLI:

Norwich, CT has suffered collateral damage as a result of Foxwoods CT. A phone call to their local realty office reveals the TRUTH and a FOREWARNING to Milford.....“It’s the worst thing that ever happened to our town."

Plain and Simple......'NO!'

 

The MetroWest Daily News

Posted Nov 18, 2013

I am of a second generation to be born in Milford. After my marriage to Dr. Peter Morganelli, we chose to remain in Milford and raise our children here.

Milford has always been a special town to me. I have grandchildren attending schools here.

The thought that many people seem to value the income from a casino more than life itself, and choose to overlook and justify all of the negative effects known to other casino towns is overwhelming to me.

I placed a call to a realtor’s office in Norwich Connecticut, one of the hardest hit by the presence of a casino. The first response to me was “It’s the worst thing that ever happened to our town.” A long negative list followed.

One home in my neighborhood recently sold, but three prospective couples refused to consider this lovely home because of a possible casino. Recently, sellers in a nice neighborhood lost a contract the day after signatures were signed because the buyers learned about the casino.

Some people attempt to mislead residents into believing house values will go up because of a casino. Read the recent article in the Milford Daily News regarding lagging sales prices in Milford
Do the other nine Massachusetts towns that voted No Casino know something that we don’t?
Protect our community before it’s too late. Vote NO on Nov.19.

BARBARA MORGANELLI
Milford

Read more: http://www.metrowestdailynews.com/opinions/letters_to_the_editor/x915445484/Morganelli-Look-before-you-leap#ixzz2l8vGySkX
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Borgata Casino Value Is Cut by $1.4 Billion in Tax Court Ruling, 61% REDUCTION

Borgata Casino Value Is Cut by $1.4 Billion in Tax Court Ruling

By Christopher Palmeri & Elise Young - Oct 21, 2013

 

Boyd Gaming Corp. (BYD) and MGM Resorts International (MGM) won a 61 percent reduction in property taxes on their Borgata Hotel and Casino in Atlantic City, a cut reflecting the decline in business there.

 

The assessed value of the resort, New Jersey’s top-grossing casino, was reduced to $870 million from $2.26 billion for 2010, according to an Oct. 18 decision released today by the Tax Court of New Jersey.

 

The tax reduction will boost profit for the casino’s owners while reducing revenue for the city. The Borgata, under its previous valuation, represented about 16 percent of Atlantic City’s $14.4 billion tax base, according to Michael Stinson, the city’s director of revenue and taxation.

 

“We certainly didn’t expect this,” Stinson said in a telephone interview. “The city’s expert came up with a value of $2.3 billion.”

 

The companies will be owed refunds totaling $48.8 million for the 2009 and 2010 tax years, or by about 61 percent, as well as interest, according to calculations by A. Paul Genato, a tax attorney in Princeton, New Jersey, who wasn’t involved in the case.

 

“This is a devastating blow to Atlantic City,” Genato said in an e-mail.

 

Stinson said the city will appeal the decision. “We certainly don’t have $50 million sitting in the bank,” he said.

 

Increased competition for players on the East Coast has hurt Atlantic City casinos prospects “for the foreseeable future,” according to the decision.

 

Casinos in the city routinely challenge their tax valuations, and the Borgata decision was the last for the 2010 tax year, Stinson said. Boyd and MGM, which co-own the property, have challenged the 2011 and 2012 assessments as well, he said. The decision, if it stands, will impact values for all of the casinos going forward, Stinson said.

 

Boyd, based in Las Vegas, fell 2.3 percent to $13.72 at the close in New York. MGM International, also based in Las Vegas, rose 0.4 percent to $20.77.

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-10-21/borgata-casino-value-is-cut-by-1-4-billion-in-tax-court-ruling.html

Caesars casinos skips out on local property tax burden in Missouri

Atlantic City casinos win tax appeals

Atlantic City casinos win tax appeals, putting additional burden on residents

By EMILY PREVITI Staff WriterpressofAtlanticCity.com    

  April 24, 2012       

ATLANTIC CITY — Local tax bills could rise more than 9 percent to make up for casino property values dropping by nearly $2.3 billion during the past year.

Most property owners will pay the higher taxes because half of the city’s casinos have successfully contested their property assessments.

Officials are working on ways to reduce the burden on noncasino taxpayers under the $232 million proposed budget for 2012, which is down $12 million, or 5 percent, from last year’s $244 million budget, City Council members said Monday.

The proposed tax rate is $1.13 per $100 of assessed value, up 9 cents from the $1.04 rate in 2011.

This year’s proposed budget would be 20 percent more than the 2007 budget of $193 million and up 91 percent from a $121 million budget of 10 years ago.

For the average residential property owner, the new budget means a bill of $2,715 this year, up $225 from $2,490 in 2011, assuming the property’s value did not change.

Average residential property values, however, dropped by nearly 5 percent in Atlantic City since last year, according to numbers provided by the municipal Tax Assessor’s Office.

Driving the tax increase is the loss of $1.4 billion in ratables, 7 percent of the city’s ratable base, down to $18.1 billion. The drop came mainly because of tax appeal settlements, including those that reduced property values for Caesars Entertainment Corp.’s four local properties.

The city’s ratable base could erode even further if remaining casino tax appeals also result in lower assessments. The city has not yet resolved appeals filed by Revel, Trump Plaza Hotel and Casino, Trump Taj Mahal Casino Resort, Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa, Tropicana Casino and Resort, Atlantic Club Casino Hotel and Golden Nugget Atlantic City, formerly Trump Marina.

“This doesn’t look good at all, and next year looks just as bad, so it’s not a good situation,” 6th Ward Councilman Tim Mancuso said. “We’re down almost $2 billion. How do you make that up?”

The proposed budget does not call for layoffs and limits department spending increases mainly to contractual obligations, city Revenue and Finance Director Michael Stinson said.

The largest is an increase of $1.8 million for police, attributable to 4 percent contracted raises and the $500,000 cost of hiring 25 Class II officers, for a total budget of $38.9 million, the proposed budget shows.

Extra money for legal costs to fight casino tax appeals is included in the budget, Stinson said. Those expenses more than doubled from $385,000 in 2009 to $785,000 in 2011, city legal bills and contracts show.

“It’s not like we’re spending crazy amounts of money on frivolous things. We’re bare-bones as it is,” Councilman Mo Delgado said. “We’ve made requests through the Governor’s Office, and with the CRDA (Casino Reinvestment Development Authority) directly about … paying taxes on their properties.”

The CRDA has historically been forgiven all or part of taxes on its resort properties.

CRDA spokeswoman Kim Butler said Monday that the agency is open to the possibility of starting or increasing existing partial property-tax payments, or other mechanisms, to help support police, fire, trash retrieval and other public services on which casinos and the rest of the Tourism District depend.
Mayor Lorenzo Langford, who did not respond to calls or emails seeking comment, previously suggested the CRDA facilitate a surcharge of some kind on casinos or other businesses to help pay for public safety services in the Tourism District.

Mancuso and other councilmen have lobbied state officials to change New Jersey’s tax laws to negate what they consider an unfair advantage afforded casinos by current regulations.

“They have to offset some services we put out — those are big issues, big tickets for us, especially public safety — not necessarily a surcharge, but through strengthening our ability to defend our assessments,” Mancuso said.

Existing rules let businesses choose how their property values are calculated, basically deciding whether to factor in financial performance or not, he said.

That scenario has forced costly court battles and compromised the ability to plan long-term for both the city government and local casino industry, Stinson said.

“We want to come up with a better method,” Stinson said. “Right now, we have these fluctuations from year to year. We can’t have that, it doesn’t work, and we’re proving that pretty easily right now.”

City officials have worked with the state Treasury Department and Local Finance Board in the Department of Community Affairs to put together the preliminary research needed for tax-assessment legislation, Atlantic City Business Administrator Michael Scott said.

They also have discussed other methods for addressing the issue in the meantime, including doing another citywide revaluation, Stinson said.

“Now is not the right time to do it,” Stinson said. “If we do a complete reval, more of a burden will be shifted to the residents because the casinos are still appealing.”

Atlantic City underwent a revaluation in 2008, and municipalities normally wait longer before doing another, Stinson said.

Still, state Sen. Jim Whelan, D-Atlantic, said another one may be necessary.

“The last one was done just a few years ago at the top of the market,” said Whelan, a former city mayor who lives in the resort. “Casinos are in a position where they’re appealing and doing assessments. A lot of individual homeowners might not have the resources or the awareness to appeal their property taxes. While it seems some shift from casinos to the rest of us is inevitable, one way of getting that down would be to do a citywide reval. Beyond that, I don’t know … there’s any extra money lying around anywhere to offset what we’re looking at.”

Massachusetts: How much should one community endure?

As a Massachusetts taxpayer who watched the unfolding Big Dig [Bipartisan] Disaster, the incompetence and corruption of Beacon Hill revealed itself.

The next generation will finalize payments for that massive monument to stupidity!

No amount of "But...but....but...." will excuse the Beacon Hill Bobble Heads 'trust me' assurances.

And yet Mayor Menino and Senator Petrucelli would seek yet another massive destruction on those same Boston neighborhoods that have been so severely impacted.

Is anyone asking about the influence of the 'Charitable' organizations both possess?

What else don't we know about?

Why else would anyone sane person believe this is sensible?

Back room deals. Secret meetings. No transparency. Is it time to end corruption in Massachusetts? Why should Massachusetts taxpayers write a check for + $500 MILLION to fund this Folly? Who is asking?

East Boston
No Eastie Casino group hones message
Posted by Jeremy C. Fox Town Correspondent April 19, 2012

Around 40 residents of East Boston and neighboring communities gathered at Sacred Heart Catholic Church on Wednesday to rally opposition to a proposed casino at Suffolk Downs.

Grassroots opposition to building a $1 billion resort-style casino at Suffolk Downs is becoming increasingly organized, with dozens of anti-casino residents of East Boston and Winthrop uniting to share information and strategize.

Some area residents began vocally opposing a casino in their backyard long before lawmakers passed legislation last November to allow gaming in the Commonwealth, and their efforts have increased as the process of considering a resort casino for the site has moved forward.

Residents are building their network of opposition at community meetings and through Facebook groups such as No Eastie Casino and Suffolk Downs Neighbor, both of which have also built websites dedicated to casino opposition.

About 40 casino opponents came together at Sacred Heart Catholic Church in East Boston on Wednesday night. At this stage, they said, their first priority is to inform their neighbors and build momentum so that when the time comes for a vote, they have the numbers necessary to defeat Suffolk Downs’ proposal.

Before any casino can open, voters get a say. In large cities such as Boston, the state casino law limits a referendum to the local ward or neighborhood, unless the mayor and City Council opt for a citywide vote.

Mayor Thomas M. Menino is against a citywide vote, but the opposition group plans to push the issue.

“Anything you can do to help spread the word [will help], because I think a lot of people are hearing one side of the story,” said Brian Gannon, 38, who has lived in East Boston's Jeffries Point section for three years.

Educating residents in East Boston and Revere is crucial, opponents say, because it appears likely that only those communities will participate in the eventual vote. While state legislation legalizing casino gambling would allow Boston to expand a vote citywide, Mayor Thomas M. Menino prefers to restrict the vote to East Boston, and there appears to be little enthusiasm among city councilors for fighting the mayor’s wish.

John F. Ribeiro, who grew up in East Boston and has now “moved out to the country” in neighboring Winthrop, created the Suffolk Downs Neighbor Facebook page and website and has become a de-facto leader of the grassroots opposition. At Wednesday’s meeting, Ribeiro said he’s up late many nights reading studies and news reports on how casinos operate and their impacts on local communities.

Ribeiro said that through loyalty programs and loans to gamblers, casinos can access credit reports and create complex profiles of their customers, including all debts, assets, and available credit. The casinos, he said, can target individual gamblers and manipulate slot machines in real time to keep them playing until they have exhausted all cash and credit available to them, a concept he said the industry calls “playing to extinction.”

Ribeiro also reviewed a long list of issues that he said can accompany the introduction of a casino into a community, including increased traffic, crime, political corruption, gambling addiction, car insurance rates, and property taxes, as well as decreasing home values and revenues for local businesses.

“In two years of studying the issue … I haven’t found a single community that’s better off for adding a casino,” Ribeiro said. “That’s the bottom line for all of this. Our backyard is full. We do enough for the state of Massachusetts, and we don’t need another thing to detract from the way of life here in East Boston.”

Other residents shared Ribeiro’s belief that the neighborhood — already home to Suffolk Downs, Logan International Airport, industrial sites, and hazardous materials storage — shoulders more than its burden of the region’s undesirable facilities.

Orient Heights resident Michael Russo, 42, lives in a home his grandfather bought in 1935 and said he plans to remain in the neighborhood for the rest of his life.

“I don’t think that we need another thing to impact that way of life,” Russo said. “I’m just deeply concerned about the state advocating something that could really topple a lot of the good things that are happening in this neighborhood right now.”

Jessica Curtis, 31, lives with her husband in the Wood Island area of East Boston and is an attorney for a consumer advocacy group. She has read the casino legislation, and she reviewed some of its provisions for her neighbors on Wednesday, explaining the roles of the Massachusetts Gaming Commission and Boston’s Host Community Advisory Committee in deciding where a casino license will be granted and what mitigation efforts will be required.

“One really important thing to note, and the reason why we’re all gathered in this room today, is that both of these decision-making bodies already have assumed that a casino is going to happen, and their job is to make it happen in the best way possible,” Curtis said.

“And one thing that I think is really important for us to keep in mind as a community is that just because something is legal, just because this is now the law, doesn’t mean it’s good for us,” she continued. “There are a lot of things that are legal that are not good for us.”

Curtis exhorted other residents to contribute their ideas and skills to oppose the casino proposal, and several spoke of the need to spread the word to the neighborhood’s immigrant groups in their native languages. The group plans to continue meeting at the church approximately every two weeks as their effort continues.

Foxboro, why risk it all?

YOUR LETTERS: Florida transplant chose Easton over Foxboro because of casino uncertainty
Published: Thursday, March 15, 2012 6:21 AM EDT

To the editor: Foxboro, why risk it all?

Foxboro, what don't you currently have that makes you willing to risk it all? I would say, nothing!

Just last year, I moved to Massachusetts from Florida with my husband and children. I have some close friends living in Foxboro and had heard a lot of good things about its schools and sense of community. Our first choice, and plan, was to buy a home in Foxboro and raise our family here because it seemed like the perfect little New England town where our children would be happy and grow up among friends. But after hearing about the proposed casino, with regret, I just stopped considering Foxboro. For people like me, buying a house means choosing a home for my family, and it is a lifetime investment.

The first concerns that came to mind were: Do I want to live in a casino town that never sleeps; deals with more drunk drivers than other towns; has 24/7 traffic issues; has a higher crime rate and depends on uncertain mitigation payments to provide town services? I also wondered how a casino development would affect the future property value of my house. In today's market there are plenty of homes available in other towns, so why would I want to buy a home in Foxboro, and put my investment at risk? Having a casino in town may or may not turn out well.

My other concern was about schools since I have two children who will start school next year. I read and heard from my friends that Foxboro schools provide an excellent education and many families with children choose Foxboro because of its school system. The school system is strong not only because it is well-managed, but also because of dedicated professionals and strong community leaders who support the schools. The schools are something Foxboro is proud of and frankly, I was really excited about.

As I followed casino news, several of the school related questions I asked myself were: Will the schools be able to provide a secure and stable environment for my children under these new circumstances? Will there be an influx of new children into the school system? Will that change the number of students per class and student-teacher ratio? Will schools be able to handle these pressures without disrupting the current school system? How effectively and expediently will the schools be able to implement corrective measures in response to these issues? Most importantly, will the issues arising from having a casino in town divert schools and teachers' attention from what really matters, which is educating my children?

I realized that if a casino is in fact built in Foxboro, no one can answer these questions today, or in the near future. It will take time to learn and understand the true impact on the town caused by a casino project, even if certain initial measures are put in place through a mitigation plan. It will take even more years to find the right balance, if at all. In the meantime my family and my children will have to live through these uncertain times without the knowledge that everything will work out as it should. Unfortunately, this is a risk I simply cannot afford to take.

At the end of the day I realized that my dream of moving to Foxboro, living near my friends and raising our children together was not going to become reality, because of the possibility of a Foxboro casino development. I just wish that this proposal never came to Foxboro and the town is just left the way it is, as there is nothing really missing. You know what I mean, it is why you and my friends choose to call Foxboro home.

Sylwia Nowakowski

N. Easton

Would a Casino in Foxborough Put Your Home's Value at Risk?

Fact: Homes in Middleboro near the 'proposed' Mashpee Wampanoag Slot Barn location were not selling. Even though it appears the Mega Monster is not coming, potential buyers are still asking questions and considering that in purchasing.

Would a Casino in Foxborough Put Your Home's Value at Risk?
A look into the impact a possible casino would have on home values in Foxborough.

By Christine OConnor

Aside from a potential increase in local revenue, job creation and a larger business tax base, proponents of the Wynn-Kraft Foxborough casino venture are citing another positive: a potential increase to home values. According to the MLS (Multiple Listing Service), a single-family home in Foxboro averages $416,000. This figure is based on selling prices of homes sold over the past six months.

"There are numerous studies that clearly show that casinos have either no effect on housing prices, or a modest positive effect, likely due to increase in employment and subsequent sales activity," said Scott Farmelant, a Jobs For Foxborough spokesman.

One such study Farmelant highlighted was conducted in 2005 by the Rappaport Institute for Greater Boston at the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University. Titled, "Betting on the Future: The Economic Impact of Legalized Gambling," the study analyzed whether legalized gambling in Massachusetts would be beneficial or harmful to a prospective casino community. Regarding home values in a casino community, the study found that casinos produced "a limited positive effect on some house prices.

"Median house prices in casino counties rose about $6,000 more than in non-casino counties," the study stated. "Median house prices in more urban casino counties were about equal to those in similar non-casino counties." The same was discovered in the 1999 National Gambling Impact Study, sponsored by former President Bill Clinton, former House Speaker Dennis Hastert and former Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott. "This study, which is considered the most authoritative and exhaustive peer-reviewed study of gambling in the history of the country, noted that counties that added casinos between 1991 and 1994 suggests that counties had relatively poor growth in property values before the introduction of gambling compared to similar counties and that the introduction of gambling increased the rate of growth of property values," Farmelant said.

However, there are a few flaws to Farmelant's argument, said Rich Owens, a member of the No-Fox-Vegas group. Each study cites growth in terms of a county, Owens said, and the Foxborough casino is not a county issue. "Further, Norfolk County is not a sparsely populated rural county," he said. "The 2010 census reveals a population of more than 670,000. That same study (Rappaport) also says no increase in employment, increase in bankruptcies and more crime," Owens continued.

Vivian Nelson, a Realtor with ReMax, has spent the past 33 years selling real estate in and around Foxborough. Lauded as one of the top-producing agents in ReMax New England, Nelson said the addition of a casino to Foxborough is "a complete unknown," regarding its affect on home values.

"Foxborough prices are where they are because of its location and proximity to Boston," Nelson said. "That mentality of closeness to Boston is what affects real estate prices. I'm not sure if the addition of a casino would affect them one way or another."

In the past 12 years, Foxborough has grown in infrastructure with the addition of Patriot Place, the new Gillette Stadium, a YMCA and a skating rink. Despite that growth, Nelson said, home prices were hardly affected, if at all.

"Through the years, we've maintained where we've always been," she said. "With all the amenities, (our home prices) haven't gone higher than the towns north of us: Walpole, Sharon, Norwood. And I would have thought we would have surpassed them by now."

On the reverse, Nelson said, Foxborough has always maintained higher home values than neighboring towns to the south: Attleboro, Mansfield and Wrentham. "Zoning laws are zoning laws," she said, "and Foxborough "has almost always enforced acre zoning."

The potential increase in traffic due to a casino has Owens - and several other anti-casino voices - concerned. With added traffic comes added noise pollution, and "it's generally an accepted fact that traffic and noise pollution are detrimental to real estate prices," Owens said. "If you live on North, Mechanic, South or Chestnut Streets, or another main road, it is reasonable to assume your property value will decrease with the increased traffic," he continued.

Nelson, like Foxborough resident Roslyn Liftman, believes that not enough information either for- or against - a casino, has been presented. "When you buy a home within close proximity to a highway, you have to expect that businesses are going to expand," said Liftman, 77. "I think we need to listen to Mr. Kraft and Mr. Wynn and digest their proposal," Liftman said. "Otherwise, how are we to make an educated decision without the facts?"