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Gambling doesn't create wealth, except for the casino owners and the lucky few who win big money. It just moves money around, often out of the pockets who have little to begin with. A lot of people have gone bankrupt from gambling. In the twenty years since gambling was legalized in Tunica County, it hasn't changed much. There was a slight increase in population after decades of decline, and millions of dollars were spent to upgrade the schools. However, the children aren't learning any better. The people who were enriched were the already-wealthy landowners and those in the county government, who got bigger salaries for nothing much. The airport terminal, convention center, and museums stay empty most of the time.
Gambling doesn't create wealth, except for the casino owners and the lucky few who win big money. It just moves money around, often out of the pockets who have little to begin with. A lot of people have gone bankrupt from gambling. In the twenty years since gambling was legalized in Tunica County, it hasn't changed much. There was a slight increase in population after decades of decline, and millions of dollars were spent to upgrade the schools. However, the children aren't learning any better. The people who were enriched were the already-wealthy landowners and those in the county government, who got bigger salaries for nothing much. The airport terminal, convention center, and museums stay empty most of the time.
Just because the casinos are there doesn't mean you have to go. There is a such thing as person responsibility.
Oh good grief on those who liken gambling to the devil's playground.
My husband and I like to gamble. Are we addicted? Not even close. Since we moved to TN, we have been to Tunica 3 times. I am less and less impressed each time to the point that I don't think we'll go again. We are spoiled, I realize, from having Atlantic City so near to us for over 15 years. What a wonderful venue. When you want to take a break from gambling, there's the boardwalk. We visited the casinos off the boardwalk once and I was unhappy. The boardwalk: stores of every kind; candy shops, clothing, antiques, jewelry - expensive or cheap; and the water. Ah, the smell of the ocean, the wonderful ocean breeze to warm you in the winter on a sunny day, freeze your hair right off your head on a winter night (but good for a quick run from one place to another); the cooling breezes in the summer, the shows, etc.
Tunica, on the other hand, has nothing besides the casino, mediocre food at best, super tight slots, and the couple of indoor pools -- well a freezing cold hallway to get to the pool, no towels even after a call, rules that are not enforced leaves a bad taste. And if you should be foolish enough to want to change venues, going outside on a warm spring/summer night is absolute madness! Mind you, mosquitoes do not like my blood - and I'm a Jersey girl. NJ is known for its horrendous mosquitoes but they are insects up there. Down in Mississippi, those are not mosquitoes: they are something out of a Hitchcock movie. I went outside for less than 5 minutes and during that run to the car, I was attacked! Those things were big enough to see and there were so many, I was killing 5-10 with each swat. I have not had that many mosquito bites on me for 60 years in TOTAL!
However, moving on to the issue of whether casinos can be good or bad for a community. When I was a young girl, we saw the decline of the Jersey boardwalks/beaches. Women started going to work full-time and families were no longer spending whole summers at the beach. The stores closed, the houses were foreclosed on by the towns for taxes, and the towns hit rock bottom in revenue. Police and fire personnel were laid off, infrastructure was in serious danger of collapse; and then came the casinos. But it was a hard battle and NJ has a casino commission that strictly regulates the casinos. Since the casinos came in: the boardwalk is in impeccable shape, the beaches are clean, stores/business have come back. There's a new train station, convention center, sports complex, new shopping area - upscale outlet mall; apartment buildings are again at capacity, new condos, new waterfront/docks. And off the boardwalk: new high school, new police cruisers and quality police force, restaurants and businesses are opening, houses are getting upgrades, some torn down to make way for nicer year-round houses, and the roads are in good shape.
15 years ago, it was safe to walk on the boardwalk all night long even during the winter but not considered so safe to walk just 1 block off. Now it's safe to walk 1 and 2 blocks off the boardwalk. There was a minor scuffle one night outside a casino entrance - looked like someone had been kicked out of a casino and wasn't happy. Before the scuffle got to be more than a few words, there were police - rollerblade, bike, and car.
The point is, casinos don't automatically bring problems. And they don't automatically bring wealth and prosperity to the surrounding areas. It takes planning. Tunica was not well-planned. It's too spread out, the variety of activities is not there. Where's the shopping? a short walk away? heck no, it's in a building we've passed from the highway - and where are the restaurants? Ah yes, the parking lots around the casinos - which means a person has to be nuts to want to go outside and drive to somewhere, braving those alien-sized mosquitoes. And the casino slots are too tight. If I don't stand a chance in heck of hitting even a medium-sized win, I'm going to be bored. How do I know when the slots are tight? When I spend an hour and not once do I hear the ding-ding-ding of someone hitting, that's tight. Not once. Not once in 2 visits. I gamble what I have saved up to gamble with - if it's fun. Last 2 visits, I didn't spend it all because it was more fun to head to our room and watch TV before getting an early night followed by an early morning departure.
Let's be honest. Casinos jobs aren't to put money in your pocket, their job is to take your money. The slots when I first moved in 2004 weren't tight like they are now and the last time I really gambled was in 6 yrs ago. That's when they really tightened their slots. When the economy went south they started hoarding money to make money and they haven't stopped. Everything else you said was right on the money.
Most of the people who work in the casinos have never lived in Tunica County, meaning they spent little money there, meaning the county didn't benefit as much as it could have.
Most of the people who work in the casinos have never lived in Tunica County, meaning they spent little money there, meaning the county didn't benefit as much as it could have.
Gambling doesn't create wealth, except for the casino owners and the lucky few who win big money. It just moves money around, often out of the pockets who have little to begin with. A lot of people have gone bankrupt from gambling. In the twenty years since gambling was legalized in Tunica County, it hasn't changed much. There was a slight increase in population after decades of decline, and millions of dollars were spent to upgrade the schools. However, the children aren't learning any better. The people who were enriched were the already-wealthy landowners and those in the county government, who got bigger salaries for nothing much. The airport terminal, convention center, and museums stay empty most of the time.
Being an avid casino visiting person, I go to Tunica, Biloxi and many other casinos in the Illinios and Missouri and Iowa all year long. I'm an admitted gambler and that may turn off some, but it's something I can afford to do and I'll continue to do that, just because. And, the good thing is, I'm lucky and win quite a bit of money during my visits.
When the Grand Casino/Tunica first built the place where Harrah's now is, we loved it. The buffet was good and we used to win a lot of money at the casino. We didn't especially like the shuttle ride to the Hotel since it was so far away, but we put up with it. Then the Grand sold to Harrah's which this gaming company, in "my own opinion only", does not operate with a generous pay out schedule for their slots. Even when they were the Mardi Gras over by Sam's Town (where Resorts is now) they didn't pay well. I used to go to St. Louis to the Harrah's along the Mississippi river. Again, poor pay outs. Then all at once just within the last year or so, Harrah's sold their St. Louis casino to Penn National Gamin/Hollywood/Argosy which I think is pretty fast growing in the gambling world. Harrah's comps were also down to null and void in my opinion so I was glad to see the sale of this one in St. Louis. I had to spend a lot of money just to get a meal comp at Harrah's before they sold in St. Louis.
For those of you who are from the Gulf Coast area, will remember that Katrina almost destroyed Harrah's in Biloxi and especially the part on the ocean side of Hwy 90. Then during re-construction efforts after Katrina, the casino was located across Highway 90 in the bottom of the hotel and then they started building on the ocean side of Hwy 90 - then stopped building with the word about town that they run out of money. A pit boss also told me this was true a couple of years ago while I was in Biloxi. Now they are/have been remodeling the hotel with the casino in the bottom and I believe they have plans/or are starting to dismantle the skeleton of concrete across from the casino/hotel and use it for riff raff in the ocean to prevent wash outs.
Harrah's also pretty recently sold the New Orleans casino and three other properties (Bally's/Cromwell/Quad in Las Vegas) to a separate entity within the Caesar's Entertainment corporation - Caesar's owns Harrah's.
We all know that casinos don't like to lose money, so they tighten their payouts, which results in fewer patrons because none of us like to lose. The casinos blame the economy, but I blame the tight fisted rather greedy casinos who want everyone's money. They don't want one of your dollars, they want multiple dollars. It seems that when a casino is losing money, they sell out to gain cash flow. Let them. Perhaps the next buyer will be more loose with the payouts. It's too bad that nearly 1800 persons will lose their jobs in Tunica, but perhaps they will be able to find other jobs. Remember that in Tunica, the Horseshoe and the Roadhouse are still owned by Harrah's/Caesar's Gaming so payouts will most likely still be tight at these two casinos.
In my opinion, Tunica Casino tourist and casino development has greatly helped the local economy and during the time I started going to Tunica/Robinsonville (20 years ago) when the first place was a tiny tiny place with one casino. Malls, restaurants, Dollar General, hotels, apartments and on and on have been built, where there was once not much there. The loss of one casino in Tunica probably won't close down the Tunica gambling operation in its entirety, but until the casinos loosen their tight fisted payouts, there most likely will be fewer tourists and gamblers and perhaps selling/closing of other casinos. I doubt that they will loosen the slots.
A person should always go to the casino with postive hopes, but should realize that most slot play results in a loss of money. That's called gambling. (Keep in mind these comments are my opinion only!)
Last edited by rural chick; 04-05-2014 at 06:31 AM..
I went to Harrah's Tunica last year, the hotel was a dump. Shades were torn, the bathroom counter was breaking all up in chunks and when I arrived there was a potato chip on the floor between the bed and nightstand. Two nights later, it was still there. There was no where to eat in the hotel and I had to trolley to the casino, which was never crowded and the odds were awful.
The trolley did run from the casino to their other casino, that was it. No cabs, no car rentals, no nothing. What a poorly run facility, not to mention the amenities around it.
I have been to Tunica before, however, it was in my motorhome, towing a car, so, I could get around.
Honestly, I can see why this place is closing. I can also see why their other places are being sold or closed. I don't ever plan to win at any casino, however, a little playing money to hold me over on my trip would be nice. I would never return to Harrah's Tunica.
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