Executive committee casino debate delayed
Posted March 9, 2013 11:30 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
The debate at city hall over the controversial Toronto casino proposal has been delayed.
The executive committee was scheduled to debate the issue on March 20 however city spokesperson Jackie DeSouza told CityNews it would be pushed to a later special or regular executive committee and council meeting.
Deputy Mayor Doug Holyday told CityNews he doesn’t mind the meeting being delayed as he would like more concrete figures before he’s willing to make a decision on the issue.
Numbers brought forth by the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corp. (OLG) have fluctuated when it comes to just how much money a casino would bring into Toronto.
Last week MGM Resorts and its partner Cadillac Fairview outlined their plan for a casino complex on the CNE grounds that includes a hotel, large shopping centre and a permanent Cirque du Soleil theatre.
MGM and Cadillac Fairview say the proposed project would take three years to build and provide 5,000 construction jobs over that period as well as 10,000 mostly union jobs.
The city held public consultations on a proposed casino in January and the city manager is expected to report back on that feedback this month. Council is expected to debate the issue in April.
Mayor Rob Ford has said he approves of a casino and said he’d like to see one built in the Port Lands or at Exhibition Place.
“I don’t know how people can refuse $150 million or $200 million of revenue and 10,000 good-paying jobs. I don’t see how they can say no to that,” he said last month.
“I just wouldn’t want to lose it to Vaughan or Mississauga.”
Toronto’s Board of Health last month reaffirmed its position against building a casino in Toronto.
A Toronto casino was pitched last year as part of the OLG’s modernization plan.
With files from Shawne McKeown
