[crystalblue]

Originally Posted by SiestaBay

Absolutely. Good post. Florida already has a stronghold on winter tourism, add casinos into the mix and it'll be a monopoly. I disagree on the rural aspect though. It needs to be on both coasts, on the beach. That'll bring in not only casino revenue but spas, restaurants, and other recreation.

There's no reason Florida shouldn't be in the gambling industry. As for crime, that's ridiculous. Take a walk up the Las Vegas strip at night then take a walk in Hollywood at night and tell me where you feel safer By giving the casinos enough room and support from the local government, not only would crime decrease and the local area improve, but the casinos would bring in a tremendous amount of revenue.

i think the problem with putting them on the beaches, esp around s florida and the pinellas coast, would be traffic.

[SiestaBay]

Originally Posted by crystalblue

i think the problem with putting them on the beaches, esp around s florida and the pinellas coast, would be traffic.

While traffic would increase, I think it's a great bargaining tool to fix problematic roadways around the area they would be developed.

Right now Florida has the upper hand when it comes to casino development. What we need is for the state and local governments to negotiate with the casinos, let them know exactly what's expected and keep a close managing arm on their development so the community benefits most out of the whole ordeal. It makes more sense to have the casinos pay for roadway improvements, beautification, etc. as opposed to raising taxes.

[DC2Tampa]

I don't know that I'd want them directly on the beaches but possibly on the mainland side of barrier islands. The beaches already draw tourists virtually year-round and property values(and therefore tax revenue) are already high in those areas. I'd rather see casinos developed in areas in need of development, either in transitional areas, rundown industrial sectors or in currently rural areas of the region. Their proximity alone would probably provide residual overflow tourist traffic to the beach communities while helping to stimulate the development of blighted areas.

Either way though, totally agree that the state would need to have extremely strict oversight in the management of any casino development and operation.

[SiestaBay]

I see your point, but unless we're talking Las Vegas/Disney style development, i.e.- a replica of NY or Paris or Rome (all together in one area) the tourists would, IMO, not spend as much time there. The thing with Florida is there's a lot to do but one of the main draws, the beach, is what people look for when it comes to selecting a 'home base' for their trip. Although the LV mega resorts are hurting now, past room rates and occupancy levels have been very high. I believe it makes more sense to allow them on the beach, thus generating high room rates, thus higher taxes.

I think it would be best to do a study of both the Hard Rocks as well as the Miccosukee (sp??) resort to see what their occupancy and room rates are... I'm sure conducting the study on occupancy would be easier said than done though! Since neither are on the beach, it would be interesting to see what's what, especially with regards to Miccosukee since they're really quite far out.

Anyway, with careful legislation not only would the beach area problems help get resolved but surrounding areas could also be enhanced with kickbacks to the cities from the casinos.

Unfortunately the rural areas, IMO, will be the last to get built up, and the reason they'll get built up is there's no more affordable housing near the coasts. I do believe this is many, many years away. Until then there's really no incentive for people to go out there, casinos, families, shopping, etc. because there's nobody there. Somebody will have to take the first step, but like I said, that won't be until other options are exhausted.

[crystalblue]

Originally Posted by SiestaBay

I see your point, but unless we're talking Las Vegas/Disney style development, i.e.- a replica of NY or Paris or Rome (all together in one area) the tourists would, IMO, not spend as much time there. The thing with Florida is there's a lot to do but one of the main draws, the beach, is what people look for when it comes to selecting a 'home base' for their trip. Although the LV mega resorts are hurting now, past room rates and occupancy levels have been very high. I believe it makes more sense to allow them on the beach, thus generating high room rates, thus higher taxes.

I think it would be best to do a study of both the Hard Rocks as well as the Miccosukee (sp??) resort to see what their occupancy and room rates are... I'm sure conducting the study on occupancy would be easier said than done though! Since neither are on the beach, it would be interesting to see what's what, especially with regards to Miccosukee since they're really quite far out.

Anyway, with careful legislation not only would the beach area problems help get resolved but surrounding areas could also be enhanced with kickbacks to the cities from the casinos.

Unfortunately the rural areas, IMO, will be the last to get built up, and the reason they'll get built up is there's no more affordable housing near the coasts. I do believe this is many, many years away. Until then there's really no incentive for people to go out there, casinos, families, shopping, etc. because there's nobody there. Somebody will have to take the first step, but like I said, that won't be until other options are exhausted.

i dunno. I think if they put some in Lakeland, ala Tunica, they would be pretty busy. And i could def see development building up around them.

[tilli]

Our economy is so tourism-dependent that it really only makes sense for us to have the Vegas style casinos here, but I'd rather that the Seminoles be the ones to get them (in exchange for a nice cut of the proceedings) and not bring in the out of state ones.

[crystalblue]

Originally Posted by tilli

Our economy is so tourism-dependent that it really only makes sense for us to have the Vegas style casinos here, but I'd rather that the Seminoles be the ones to get them (in exchange for a nice cut of the proceedings) and not bring in the out of state ones.

dont know if thats possible. i think they can only build them on reservations, and i dont see the govt adding new ones.

[**NoodLes**]

Hell YES!! Their always complaining about how their short on money for education, tolls, and everything else. I'm surprised they haven't made them sooner. But, FL has always been on the short bus so it's no surprise to me. Our politicians need to wake up and adapt instead of coming up with stuff that never works. No wonder people don't move here anymore.

[crystalblue]

I suggest we contact our local congress person

Florida House of Representatives - Representatives

[tilli]

dont know if thats possible. i think they can only build them on reservations, and i dont see the govt adding new ones.

They can grant permission for all the games to their existing casinos like the Hard Rock.