Buffalo Rising Online

too bad buffalo wont see that money if the dirty dozen has their way....

cue endless conversation about whether or not buffalo should have a casino....ready...GO!....

I hope that either way, the Seneca's won't be required by law to surrender to NYS 100% of the gaming proceeds collected after the date that the court ruled the site illegal, that is, while they would have been operating illegally.

Buffalo already saw that money . . . it came from our pockets.

I wonder how much the net is down at Fort Erie Slots?

screw revenue. gambling is a sin. if we stop the casino we stop the devil and the stranglehold that he has on New Jack!

2 million.. that could have been the GAP financing for the Graystone, 500 Block of Main, Genesee Block, Richardson Complex, Maybe a parking garage instead of another collection of lots around D'Youville..

That is the problem I see with this deal. Fine go.. gamble.. but it is such a shame that 2 million dollars is disappearing from our local economy. So for every 2.8 million we spend.. we get 700k back.. Sounds like one hell of a win! Go Casinos.

Chump change that was extracted from the poorest among us.

i love the logic here..."So for every 2.8 million we spend.. we get 700k back.. Sounds like one hell of a win! Go Casinos".......what do you think entertainment is? Shouldnt chophouse be closed down for charging 3-4x the price for a steak i could have made at home? In that case for every 45 dollars i spend i get zero back since the owner does nothing but buy parking lots. This Entertainment is about getting people to come to our sad downtown. People arent going to spend their life savings at a casino unless they already are in the mindset where they would otherwise lose it to online gaming or at wilson farms or some other wasteful resource....I agree are deal is raw on this but most of the resonses to this are stupid. "2 million.. that could have been the GAP financing for the Graystone, 500 Block of Main, Genesee Block, Richardson Complex, Maybe a parking garage instead of another collection of lots around D'Youville.." riiiiiiight cuz you are about to send a check to any of these companies to get any of that done right? No, but we can fund it thru some of the revenue we are getting here, wish it was more, but its money the city isnt going to see at all otherwise unless people start getting the undying urge to donate money to random projects

If it was not gambled away in WNY it would have been gambled away in Canada. For all those who think stopping this casino will put and end to WNYers gambling - you need to get a clue

"Why does NYS get all the$$ while the City gets such a pittance. What genius constructed that deal, what is it 25% of 25%."

This is a great question. After all, it's the city that will provide the bulk of the casino's customers, and the city will bare the brunt of any social impact, as well. So why does the state get any of this money? Their contribution to this project was to encourage a cynical ploy to get around the state constitution. Is that the kind of behavior that should be rewarded?

A few more questions while I'm at it:

1. What happens in 15 years when the agreement between the Senecas and the state ends? Is there any provision for either side to be able to renew the agreement, or renegotiate it? Or do the Senecas' commitments simply end?

2. If casino gambling is such a great deal, why the need to grant a monopoly to another nation?

3. If casino gambling is so great, why doesn't Albany -- which is dominated by downstate interests -- push for these casinos in NYC?

Italyan hit a home run. Sorry to see you go. We need more people like you in Buffalo.

And for those who think that money is "disappering" from Buffalo at the casino, doesn't it disapper when you shop at the mall? Those department stores and chain stores are owned by international conglomerates who manufacture their goods overseas. The only people who beneift are the retail workers (who happen to get paid less than the casino employees get paid).

So from now on, I am only buying my clothes from seamstresses in Buffalo. I am only buying my produce from Western NY farmers. I will only go to locally produced theater. I will not go to the movies because no movies are produced in Buffalo. Restaurants? Will never step foot into a chain again. Will not buy a car that does not use American Axle parts. All these businesses are stealing our money and weakening our economy. Everyone - buy Buffalo only!!!! And certainly don't go the Seneca casino. Smart people like me need to tell dumb people like you what to do and what not to do with your money.

Colin, have you been to nyc?! they have stuff our downtown could only dream of. They dont need encouragement for people to come downtown...buffalo does...hence they dont need a casino, they have broadway, restaurants, clubs, times square, etc etc etc. We have some stuff...but does attracting more people really sound like that bad of an idea?

I would never gamble. I don't think it's fun, so it is stupid for me to lose money at something that I don't enjoy. But who the hell am I or anybody to pass judgement on others who do think it is fun? Yes, there are addicted gamblers, but the vast majority of gamblers just have a great time if they win, and a good time if they lose (but not too much). And that's fine with me.

Italyan - do you really think Buffalo is unique in it's active citizenry?

Ron, God called, he wants HIS land back.

Well this should at least pay for another year's rental of Byron Brown's bullet proof DeLorean Limo.

The big question on eveyones mind should not be what how much money the city gets from slots

The big question on everyones mind should be what the city is going to do with the money from the slots

Will it put the money into the general fund used to pay for albanys unfunded mandates, local union demands and of course patronage/buracracy/benefits

or

Will it put the money into an off budget account to invest in the city, its infrastructure, its brownfield remediation, streets, sewars, water mains, street lights, sidewalks, curbs, urban industrial/office parks, infill residential, facade repair tomajor historical buildings like the science museum, extend the light rail, reactivate the beltway, etc.

One sucks the money down a black hole...the other invests in Buffalo to be a major Great Lakes City.

ok I have to vent again to all the idiots that dont know anything. First off they are expecting about 5-7 million for the city of buffalo in which it can use for projects to get done,plus help pay for things like union contracts that go up every year in which you same people complain about so that they dont have to raise taxes to keep up with them. Second lets look at raplh wilson. How much money does erie country get for all the parking and other things that happen at RWS??????? ZERO!!!!!!!!!!! and its paid for by the tax payer go figure great deal there to huh??????? Third even though i dont plan on going there the Brass pro is coming and it has a 20 yr contract in which it doesnt pay taxes either. Should we throw them out also??????? I dont have a problem with them because they are apiece of the puzzle also. Maybe we should shut down all the churches across erie county because they dont pay taxes either and from what i am seeing lately they dont even look like churches anymore and more like a businees now????????? So maybe they can start paying 22% of there money also because they also have Bingo (omg its gambling) in a church in which GOD is suppose to be totally against??????????? Maybe the Bingo needs to pay 22% of there money to taxes and then the poor people that go to bingo wont have to waste there school supply money, that they spend there, hoping to win 250 dollars or going home and telling there children they cant eat tonight because of the bingo at the church. I go to the casino and i can tell that all the people on here that are against it havent ever gone, because if they did then they would relaize that 95% of the people there can afford to go and spend money and not worry about it. i have also gone to Bingo at a church and a firehall and i can tell you that the people that go there cant afford to play they just do hoping to win so they can have extra money but i dont see anybody on here to worried about those people that the churches are stealing moneyfrom, and now cant buy school supplies as the better people for buffalo have said??????? The casino is only a piece of the pie for Buffalo and people like myself go there for fun and if i lose so be it i leave and go back another day. If i win great i keep that money and use it next time i go so i pretty much break even all year when its all sad and done. i only do it for fun and most people there like myself do it for the sam reason. Yes you are going to get people there that cant afford it, but you will get people that go to bars, resturants, football games, hockey games and etc that cant afford it too. Should we just cancel everything so there is nothing to do in Buffalo at all, so people dont spend money????? Get real people.

good question buffaloweiner.

and what happens when this money dries up? 14 years and then what? we stand there without our pants?

With a major budget crisis looming in Albany, I wonder if the state will give the money to the host communities?

Under the Compact, the Seneca's must pay the State the net slot revenue. It is then up to the State to send a percentage to the host community, however, the State is not legally obligated under the Compact to do so.

I hear our "moral bastions" at St Paul's Cathedral want to run a craps game, roullette and scratch tix to see who gets into heaven...

How discriminatory to place a casino right next door to the Perry St. projects.

A short walk across the street to gamble away their welfare checks that come out of our hard earned taxes.

The slots open down there now cater to the poor and many of the minorities in town.

I hope the new casino is more like the falls view, with a dress code and a clean environment.

Even if the city of Buffalo sees revenue frorn the Casino, the money will mysteriously disappear like it usually does and nothing will get done. We will still be 2nd poorest city in the country.

I, like most people, will loosely budget a certain amount of money towards entertainment. That money might be spent on a couple nights out in a month, a day at Darien Lake, or several small entertainment themed expenditures throughout the month. I am by no means affluent, but I recognize the need to mix a little play in with the work. Should I decide that I would like to go to a casino, I will do so. If not locally, then I will budget it out a little and go to Las Vegas, I don’t really care. I will not be spending my entertainment funds on philanthropic causes for the betterment of Buffalo (that is what the philanthropic budget funds are for (double good luck if an event touches on both)). Where would you like me and others like me to spend our money? I can assure you that Las Vegas will not be sending Buffalo a check any time soon…

Italyan, where do I sign up for the CATFG? You're not alone.

If you work hard and are responsible you don't get help. The government rewards you for being lazy and stupid.