Of particular concern and debate in the community right now is the issue of the proposed casino up for referendum vote in November. If approved, it will be constructed at the old Schoolfield Mills site on West Main Street. While we at 5th Tangent welcome multiple viewpoints on this and a whole host of other issues, we would like to explore the potential economic benefits for the entire community if the referendum passes in November.
SB 1126 was introduced in the General Assembly in December 2018 and made its way through the procedural journey to be signed by the Governor by March 2019. An updated version, SB 36, was passed in April 2020 that incorporated amendments recommended by Governor Northam. The authorized casino gaming in the Commonwealth of Virginia to be regulated by the Lottery Board. Such gaming would be limited to cities that meet certain criteria. Among other things, these criteria include: “Any city that had . . .an unemployment rate of at least five percent in November 2017 . . . a poverty rate of at least 20 percent in 2016 . . . and . . . a population decrease of at least 20 percent from 1990 to 2016 . . ..”
There was a 5.7% unemployment rate for Danville in November 2017. There was a poverty rate of 23.6% in 2016. The population of Danville in 1990 was 53,056, and the population in 2016 was 41,967. A decline of 20% from the 1990 rate would have been 10,611. The decline was more significant than that, 11,089. Therefore, the threshold for this particular criterion was met. There are three other criteria listed in the bill, but they do not apply to Danville.*
The cities that meet the listed criteria, in turn, must next receive proposals by casino chains. If found satisfactory by local government, the project must be affirmed via referendum by a majority vote in the respective city. Danville City Council has received and accepted such a proposal by Caesars Entertainment, and residents will vote on the casino proposal in the upcoming November election. The plan includes up to 500 hotel rooms, a 35,000-square-foot conference center, a 2,500-seat live entertainment venue, several restaurants and bars, along with 2,000 slot machines, 16 poker tables, and a sportsbook. The project's expected completion date is 2023.
The bill sets a tax for revenues to be sent to the cities that host a casino. Also, the bill directs funds directly from revenues toward public school renovation, as well as a fund for treating problem gambling.
Danville qualified to be a potential site for a casino because of very significant trends in the community that should be of great concern to everyone. Poverty, unemployment, and a decline in tax revenue hurt all areas of society. Local taxes go to schools, maintenance of public parks and facilities, and many other vital functions of local government.
The building and opening of such a casino could do very well to enhance these issues in the community of Danville. Representatives from Caesars Entertainment have stated that the casino will create approximately 1,300 jobs with secure benefits packages, average pay between $35,000 and $47,000, and is forecasted to bring in $38 million in annual tax revenue for Danville. Also, approximately 900 construction jobs will be generated during the build. Obviously, in an area with very high unemployment, jobs offer a self-explanatory value. Construction of the building alone will bring a sustained, possibly years-long uptick in new business to the community. Even if all the workers hired for the build are not from this area, all of the visiting workers will have to stay somewhere, eat somewhere, and buy clothes and new supplies somewhere. Local restaurants, hotels, and other stores will benefit from this influx of workers.
This trend will only be sustained further upon completion of the casino, as visitors come to the casino from many miles away. They will also have to stay somewhere, eat somewhere and shop somewhere. Imagine the hypothetical case of a retired couple from the Piedmont region. Previously, they may have enjoyed going twice yearly to Cherokee, North Carolina, or to the Greenbriar in West Virginia, to do some gambling. Now they may come instead to Danville, Virginia, in all likelihood a much more convenient trek for them to make, and one they would be much more inclined to repeat year after year. Let’s also imagine that only one of the spouses is interested in gambling, and on these reoccurring trips, the other of the two likes to get acquainted with the local community, maybe “check out” some stores. They then have the opportunity to explore the remerging Schoolfield District (currently eligible for designation as a state and federally recognized historic district) that surrounds the casino site, or drive a short distance to Downtown. Inquisitive minds may travel even further out from the casino to see all the beautiful things Danville has to offer. Businesses in the area would benefit from such exploration, and this effect would only be multiplied as these visitors relay the message to their friends about what an inviting and charming community Danville is. Fairly soon, people may be coming to our area for trips unrelated to gambling at all, or even move to the region. All of these possibilities could further improve the economic challenges that exist for Danville.
Some valid concerns may involve an increase in crime related to the introduction of a casino to a city. Many of these concerns may not apply to our unique situation, and those that remain can be feasibly addressed and guarded against.
Any suspicion of organized crime influencing the operation of casinos is mainly unfounded in the 21stcentury. Many may hark back to Las Vegas being allegedly bankrolled by crime outfits in the 1940s as proof of some kind of inevitable link between the gaming industry and organized crime. There are entire regulatory agencies devoted to the inspection of ownership, funding, and profiting from gambling and ensuring that these arrangements are “on the up and up.” Indeed, part of the very bill that authorizes casinos in Virginia requires thorough background checks on all parties involved before approval of the casinos.
Some may assume that crime will increase tangentially from the casino, such as the mugging of intoxicated patrons upon leaving with their profits, or drug dealers and prostitutes milling about outside the casino. These scenarios are rather unlikely, and any developments that threaten to create a seedy environment in the vicinity will undoubtedly be addressed by local law enforcement. If the community or local government feels as though these concerns are especially pressing, the expected tax revenue from casino profits will surely cover the cost of more police patrols in the parking lot. Aside from this, the casino operators will undoubtedly be trying to create the best impression possible in a community in which at least a slight minority of people are skeptical about such a business. They likely will instruct their security guards to prevent such a situation from even getting to a point where any outside intervention is necessary.
Another valid concern of those in the community is the moral issue of gambling. Both the potential for addiction, as well as the general “message” we could be sending, are commonly mentioned as objections to the introduction of a casino to this community. Any problems related to addiction that may arise from community members can more than adequately be addressed by the increase in tax revenue, including the specific fund created in the bill for treating gambling addiction. The “message” we might be sending to children or the community is a much more amorphous, difficult concern to address. To borrow a phrase, we live in a fallen world, and many other morally ambiguous activities and establishments exist in America, and even in our area. “Yes,” one might say, “but just because liquor stores and gentleman’s clubs exist, doesn’t mean we need to introduce more sin and temptation to our community!” This notion, of course, must be balanced against the great benefits and relief it will bring to the community. This is a question that is not only settled by spreadsheets and charts, but by the searching of the conscience, and we will not attempt to make this decision for voters. They alone will have to do that in November.
Influence on children is a concern we take seriously, but one we feel is unlikely to cause much of an issue. The casino site is not likely to be “accidentally stumbled upon” by children, no more than they might happen upon a liquor store or any other morally hazardous influence. In fact, it will be even less accessible than most ABC stores, which are often located in strip-malls close to every other type of shop. The casino will be located on a property that sits a distance from any major roadways and will be secured by fencing and many other safeguards that prevent children from wandering into the vicinity. In any event, one casino would not lead Danville to become a glitz-and-glam cousin of “Sin City” Las Vegas. “Well,” one might say, “not right away, but it’s a slippery slope! If we allow one today, we may eventually allow one hundred tomorrow!” This is an unlikely scenario, as the zoning committees and other parties involved in the approval of such casinos would not allow an unsightly transformation of our community away from the quaint, inviting, family-oriented town it is now. We still have an identity, casino or not, and we will not lose sight of this in some sort of runaway train of casino construction.
All in all, a casino could allow a reflourishing of our local economy and provide a much-needed boost to all of our amazing local businesses. It is worth considering when going to the ballot box this fall.
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*The first references any city “(I)n which at least 40 percent of the assessed value of all real estate . . . is exempt from local property taxation, according to the Virginia Department of Taxation Annual Report for Fiscal Year 2017” and one that “experienced a population decrease of at least seven percent from 1990 to 2016 . . . .” We know this criterion does not apply, as though we have already stated that the population decrease was far greater than 7 percent, the total tax-exempt to fair market value was 19.36%, well below the 40 percent threshold). The third requires that a city be located “adjacent to a state that has adopted a Border Region Retail Tourism Development District Act.” This seems to reference Tennessee HB524 passed last year. This applies to a city such as Bristol, Virginia, but not Danville, as North Carolina has not passed such a Border Region Retail Tourism Development District Act. The fourth criterion requires that a city with over 200,000 population have gambling that is operated by a federally recognized Native American tribe. This is also not at play in the instance of Danville.
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References
Virginia Senate Bill 36- Acts of Assembly 2020 Reconvened Session
Virginia Employment Commission, Employment Numbers for November 2017
Danville Regional Foundation, Poverty Rate for Danville Virginia 2016
Danville Population 1990- Official City Report
**Official government numbers via census are only available every ten years. There was a census conducted in 1990, but since the bill specified that the population change was to be measured in 2016 numbers, we were forced to use a population estimate from the Weldon Cooper Center.
Virginia Department of Taxation- Annual Report for Fiscal Year 2017
1 Comments
Oct 6, 2020, 9:45:20 AM
Larry Morris - Thank you for at least giving some lip service to the items many fear could happen. You did a creative job on lip service to down play those events without fully addressing them. I agree we need a economy boost, I just don't agree this is the way. You also played loose with some of the "facts" you used.