Casinos in Los Angeles county, Yes or No??? (San Jose, San Francisco: hotels, house)

[MuffinCups]

I know California has a pact with Native American tribes, (Pechanga, Morongo, Spa...) allowing gambling on reservations in exchange for a share of the revenue.

If this could be changed and private companies Harrahs, Station Casinos, etc. could build casinos w/hotels/restaurants, in the Los Angeles area would this be a good idea, would you visit the casinos?

The casinos could be located in areas that need jobs desperately, I was thinking of Hollywood Park as a start and some of the large manufacturing plants/car dealerships that are no longer in use. These would be casinos with slots, tables, hotel, dining.

Isn't this what other states do? If thousands of jobs could be created and additional tax revenue for the cities to offset the decline in property taxes.

I just don't see other industries taking up the slack for the loss of jobs, declining revenues, etc.

[BRinSM]

we already have casinos in LA: commerce, hollywood park, and hustler to name a few. in fact, i think i read that commerce has the largest poker room in the world.

[MuffinCups]

Originally Posted by BRinSM

we already have casinos in LA: commerce, hollywood park, and hustler to name a few. in fact, i think i read that commerce has the largest poker room in the world.

These casinos don't have slot machines, slots have become the casinos bread & butter. The type of casinos I was mentioning are the Vegas style casinos...the whole enchilada, not just table & bingo games.

It is ironic that slots were invented to keep the wives of table players (men) busy, now they are a bigger draw than tables.

[californio sur]

I thought only Nevada and New Jersey allowed gambling aside from casinos run by tribes? Doesn't the Hustler casino in Gardena have slots? There's another large casino by the Artesia\91 freeway but I can't recall it's name or if it is in Gardena or not.

[silverkris]

Gardena I believe, has card clubs, rather than full-blown casinos in the Nevada style.

[californio sur]

Originally Posted by silverkris

Gardena I believe, has card clubs, rather than full-blown casinos in the Nevada style.

Are there casinos in the Bay Area? I can't recall ever seeing one but I think there are casinos around Vallejo\ Vacaville, right?

[silverkris]

Originally Posted by californio sur

Are there casinos in the Bay Area? I can't recall ever seeing one but I think there are casinos around Vallejo\ Vacaville, right?

I think there's an Indian casino round San Pablo (north of Berkeley but south of Vallejo), which is right off I-80.

There are card clubs in San Jose (Garden City, Bay 101) and Colma (just south of San Francisco - a town that has more dead people than living ones due to its cemetaries).

[LArenter]

@Silverkris

When I was in college I would take some night trips to Cache Creek, a bit north east of Sacramento. There was also a card room right off the 80 after the Bestbuy, perhaps you are right it may have been in San Pablo; then there was also a card room in Emeryville as well.

The way casinos aka card rooms througout CA operate is that the house/casino does not collect the winnings from the gambling -- they only collect the commission, usually a $1 per hand. For instance, if you gamble $10 bucks in Three Card Poker, you have to put the $1 commission down, which the house collects. Then, a third party, the bank, will cover all gains/(losses) -- this is the way they make it legal in CA.

The Indian Casinos have slot machines and, although in the early 90's collected commission as well on the tables, have since stopped that practice. Be weary of the Indian casinos though, they aren't as regulated as say Vegas where the slot machines are audited and are required to make a certain percentage payout.

Casinos as a whole are great for jobs and the tax revenue, but it's a toss-up on the impact on society and the economy as a whole.

[SandyCo]

I wouldn't visit the casinos, but that's only because gambling makes me mad. I resent any activity that usually ends with me being $20 poorer in only a few minutes! Even nickel slots, which used to be fun, have twenty different lines to play on any given pull (or button push). They don't call slot machines "one armed bandits" for nothing!

[BRinSM]

i'm not necessarily opposed to additional gambling options in CA, but i do think that gambling (like the lottery) becomes a poor man's tax, as those who are financially sound are usually smart enough not to gamble their livelihood away. having said that, i have to say it's quite interesting how all casinos in CA are either located in the middle of the desert or in the 'hood.