As a resident of Bangor, I have observed the benefits of Hollywood Slots. I have watched as the facility has become a great member of the community and watched their investments in projects benefiting all of us. The ripple effect of Hollywood Slots’ generosity has had a positive impact on Bangor and the region.
If other communities are willing to host a racino and want the same benefits we have here, we should support their projects as well.
I applaud the editorial board at the Bangor Daily News for hitting the nail on the head with its Oct. 24 piece supporting a yes vote on Question 2. The newspaper wisely took a broad look at the current state of casino-style gaming in Maine, and what that landscape should look like in the future.
We know the racinos proposed for Biddeford and Washington County are not the magic bullets to reverse Maine’s economic struggles. We also know that the introduction of slots facilities in those areas of our state will mean competition for Hollywood Slots in Bangor and the casino that is under construction in Oxford County.
Understandably, there has been some push-back in Penobscot and Oxford counties by people who already have “their” projects and they don’t want newcomers to join the game.
That’s a human response to a perceived threat. But let’s not miss the big picture.
It makes sense to allow the two racinos proposed by Question 2. With these additions, Maine would have one gaming facility in its southernmost county, one in its easternmost county, one in Bangor at the heart of north-central Maine and one to the west in the Oxford Hills. As far as geography goes, you can’t plan it much better.
The goal here is to boost tourism in Maine. Instead of squabbling over the same pot of tourist revenue, we should work together to make the pot bigger. Destinations in our diverse regions would help make that a reality.
Would it have made more sense for the Legislature to have crafted a comprehensive plan for gaming facilities, including the setting of license fees, revenue allotments and locations? Perhaps. But Question 2 accomplishes many of the goals that would have been high on the list for legislators.
The people behind the racino proposals are no strangers to Maine. In the south, Ocean Properties has teamed up with Scarborough Downs to develop a modernized version of the Downs, just off the turnpike in Biddeford. The founder of Ocean Properties, Tom Walsh, grew up in Bangor and started his career with a hotel in Brewer in the 1960s. The company now owns more than 100 hotels in the U.S. and Canada, including The Samoset in Rockport and 11 others in Maine.
In Washington County, the Passamaquoddy Tribe wants to build a racino in Calais. The tribe has sought a gaming operation for many years. Maine voters, despite approving gaming facilities in Bangor and Oxford, have rejected those requests. Basic fairness calls for an approval this year. The tribe wants the racino to be an economic spark and help lower the unemployment rate, which is approaching 70 percent on the reservation.
Not only will the racinos provide badly needed jobs in those two areas, they will generate revenue for the state’s General Fund, the agricultural fairs and scholarships for our universities and community colleges. Through supporting the harness racing industry, the racinos also will have a positive ripple effect on our agricultural resources.
It would have been an easy decision, and probably a popular one, for the editorial board at the Bangor Daily News to join the simmering turf war and editorialize against Question 2. Fortunately, the folks at the BDN, like the voters of Penobscot County, have a tradition of independent thinking.
Now is not the time for parochialism. It is not the time for turf wars.
We must not lose sight of the fact that as we move toward the future, Maine’s economy will sink or swim not on a county by county basis, but as a whole.
Richard Stone is a former state representative, two-term mayor and four-term city councilor from Bangor. He and his wife, Sue, live in Bangor, and they have four children.