Referendum in Pickering: Casino Question

NRU
April 30, 2014
By Leah Wong

Municipal councils across the Greater Toronto Area have been turning down the option to host a casino with considerable consistency except in Durham Region where three municipal councils are on board. As part of its modernization plan the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation is looking for private companies to take over the operations of its existing gaming facilities and any future developments, but the plan is premised on having willing host communities.

Despite a council vote in favour of becoming a host community, Pickering residents will have their say in a referendum on whether they want a casino in the city when they head to the polls on October 27.

“Council wanted an opportunity for the public to decide,” the mayor’s public affairs coordinator Mark Guinto told NRU. Pickering council approved a referendum question on April 22, which will ask voters if they favour “a gaming facility (casino) in the City of Pickering as part of a Hotel Convention Centre, Entertainment Complex in a non-residential area?”

According to the Municipal Elections Act the results of the referendum will be binding if at least 50 per cent of the electors vote on the issue. If the results are not binding, Guinto said the topic will go back to council to decide how to move forward.

Pickering council originally voted to become a willing host city for a new casino in December 2012. Pickering is located in an OLG zone with Ajax and Whitby. Ajax council has already expressed interest in expanding its gaming facilities at Ajax Downs, which opened in 2006.

During the initial casino vote, Pickering conducted local consultations and looked at the social impact Ajax Downs has had on the community. Because of its close proximity to Pickering Guinto says that both municipalities would have felt it if Ajax Downs was causing adverse effects such as a rise in crime.

“It’s been in operation for a number of years and the sky hasn’t fallen,” says Guinto. “Pickering and Ajax are still great communities to live in.”

Pickering, Ajax and Whitby are the only three municipalities in the GTA that have indicated they would be willing to host a casino.

OLG originally targeted the cities of Toronto, Mississauga, Markham and Vaughan and the Town of Richmond Hill.

When the councils in each of these municipalities voted against hosting a new casino, OLG changed gears focussing instead on the bundling of operations at existing facilities in the GTA. Toronto council voted against both a new casino and expansion of the Woodbine Racetrack.

OLG issued a request for pre-qualifications for a joint operator for Ajax Downs, the Woodbine Racetrack and Scugog Island’s Great Blue Heron Casino, which closes June 12. The RFPQ is part of OLG’s modernization plan, which envisions private companies taking over the operations of existing gaming facilities from OLG. The selected service provider for the West GTA bundle will also have first right of refusal if there is an opportunity to develop a new site within the GTA. But the municipality must be on side, so OLG is looking for willing host communities.

The Pickering referendum comes amidst a developer proposal for a major tourist complex in the city. A preliminary conceptual master plan for Durham Live shows how the facility could integrate uses such as a convention centre, cinemas, office buildings and a casino. While the conceptual site plan does include the potential for a casino, the plan is not dependent on the approval of a casino.

Pickering planning staff is currently in the process of reviewing the application and anticipates a report to council in the summer. Guinto says that the Durham Live application is a separate issue from that of a casino, as Pickering voted to become a willing host before the proposal was submitted.

As there can only be one casino per zone in Ontario, Ajax Downs would have to close for a new casino to open in Pickering. OLG spokesperson Tony Bitonti told NRU that the successful operator could look at moving the slots at Ajax Downs to another facility within the zone, but those who submitting proposals do not have to indicate their plans right away.

“OLG is not looking for an operator that says they will move,” says Bitonti. Contracts with the operator will be for 20-25 years and if during that time the operator is interested in relocating one of its facilities it will need approval from both OLG and the local municipality.