City
Caesars releases Convention Centre casino renderings
First Oxford Properities showed its hand with a series of images depicting a revamped Metro Toronto Convention Centre at the heart of a $3-billion casino proposal, now American gambling giant Caesars has followed suit with its own ideas for what a gaming facility on the site could look like.
Decidedly understated compared to the giant residential towers and sprawling park proposed by Oxford Properties, the renderings show a relatively low-key entrance to the facility on Front Street near the Rogers Centre and a concept for an urban park and performance space in the surrounding area. That said, several towers loom semi-transparently in the background without a mention in the accompanying press release.
According to information released with the images, the three-storey glass building that includes the main entrance to the complex is "sophisticated and modern" and designed to integrate into the city's "urban fabric." It's also supposed to compliment our "pedestrian-friendly" streets and Toronto's "robust" transit system (gosh, such compliments.)
The company also hints at its agreements with musical acts such as Celine Dion, Elton John, Shania Twain, and Rod Stewart, possible visitors to the "year-round" outdoor venue perhaps. Dion's name is shown in bright lights on stage at the "Colosseum" while a modest crowd looks on from the lawn. I'm not sure it would be the same story in the dead of winter mind you.
Caesars hasn't officially locked onto the convention centre as its preferred location but these images give some idea as to what the company is thinking. Perhaps the small-scale complex is designed to work in contrast to other grander proposals. Retail and dining outlets on the site are also included in the drawings on the edge of the performance space.
Recently, Rob Ford said he would prefer a downtown casino to be on city land (which the Convention Centre isn't) and hinted he'd like to see $100-million in revenue for Toronto and between 10 and 20 thousand new jobs.
What do you think of these latest images? Do you think this proposal is better than the one detailed by Oxford Properties? Is an outdoor performance venue what downtown needs?
Images: Caesars Entertainment Corporation
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However, I do agree that it needs to be in the core of the city, and Woodbine doesn't do that. The transit to that location sucks, and no offence to those that live in the surrounding area, but it's not exactly a ringing endorsement of the type of built up metropolis that visitors want to see. You might as well build it in Mississauga, or Vaughan if you build it there.
I think that the province dropped the ball by ruling out an Ontario Place casino, and think that the city would be making a bigger mistake if they rule out the Exhibition grounds. The casino could go toward modernizing and revitalizing events like the CNE, because they know that it brings people in to their space.
Aside from that space, the only other place I would suggest would be in the Portlands/Harbourfront areas, or maybe somewhere like Downsview.
We need to have this in a place that already has the infrastructure, not somewhere we can HOPE to build up into what it needs to be.
These renderings are UGLY.
Everyone thinks they know whats best for everyone else.
Honestly, mind your own business.
If i want to go to a casino and gamble my hard earned money, who the hell are you to tell me otherwise. Who made you my saviour? Pathetic...
Now on to gambling issues...
As someone else has mentioned before, gambling is really accessible no matter where you are. Just log onto a website and gamble all your money away if you like. Saying that a casino will increase gambling is just stupid. If you are a gambler already then you are probably doing it online already or through other means. Sure they might go to the casino when it opens, but it doesn't change the fact that they were gamblers already.
0.2% of GTA adults have a serious gambling problem! 0.2%!!! That isn't even half of 1%! All you people are worried about is the .2% of problem gamblers!!!??
You people HAVE to start worrying about your own lives and stop telling people what they should or should not do. It is not your place.
Regardless the Casino will come and if you do not like it, move to the burbs where you dont need to worry about a casino.
Oh wait, they already have casinos in the burbs, so i guess you are s#it out of luck...
To complain about people telling you what to do is stupid. It's like complaining that I can't smoke in a restaurant now... so passe.
A casino would attract conventions. It would attract tourism. It would fill hotels. It would fill restaurants. It would present another option for things to do for locals. This location makes the most sense.
Of course gambling could be problematic. So can many others things in life that we are already surrounded with.
Put that crap in Mississauga
Clearly you haven't...
Funny how you mention how you would not rather look upon a gaudy monstrosity, have you seen downtown recently? Clearly the hundreds of condos that all look the same is no problem.
Have you seen the MTCC? It has to be one of the ugliest buildings in that area if not the city.
At least a casino would make the area look better and way more interesting.
With the Rogers centre, CN Tower, ACC and the Ripley's aquarium and the lake all within walking distance it would be the perfect addition.
As soon as people hear casino, they think its going to be this huge casino with thousands of slots and table games. The reality is that only about 10% will be a gaming floor and the rest will be hotels, entertainment complex's that could bring some interesting shows to the city.
As someone who was born and raised in downtown I would love to see this built. Not necessarily this Cesars version but something interesting that adds to the area.
Adding to the area shouldn't be that hard, anything other then a condo would stand out...
d.
1. http://scholarworks.umass.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1012&;context=larp_ms_projects
2. http://research.stlouisfed.org/publications/review/04/01/garrett.pdf
3. http://www.stlouisfed.org/community_development/assets/pdf/casinogambling.pdf
There is a lot of research on the subject, and it's akin to saying that an arena has large spillover effects, which is not always the case. A casino's economic impact will depend on factors that are both exogenous and endogenous to the structure itself.
My question is, what is the reason behind this? Is it to generate tourism revenue? Vancouver has a casino, but do tourists visit Vancouver because of the casino? The money that goes into the casino will be from Torontonians and GTA folks. How does this benefit Toronto itself when the money belongs to Torontonians. It'll just make people more poor, especially the demographic of casino goers that I have encountered aren't from an income that allows them to gamble. (If you worked at the cne casino, maybe you heard of John from Texas Hold em on the specialty tables. If not, he's a frequent player from 8pm to 3-5am. His shirt has holes in it, and he needs a bath. He says he's unemployed and is on welfare.)
This generating 20k jobs? Yeah I'm sure it does, but 90% of them will be part time jobs with minimal incomes and high turn over rates. You'll get people who are desperate to work with low income. Not everyone is a student trying to work part time to pay of tuition or have spending money.
This casino plan sounds like a short term grab for money. Long term, I don't see any benefit from it. The crowd generated from this won't be good. I agree with Lee Zamporo, it will ruin the image of Toronto. Not physical image like Some Guy had suggested. Why is an American company planning this? Doesn't that mean the revenue won't go to Toronto? The only money that comes out from them is land they are renting at a fixed rate. I'm not too sure how foriegn investments work.
Anyways, this is my opinion as an ex casino worker. I'm definitely nay with this. Casinos do pay well at some places, dealers get about $17/h, but the high turn over rate isn't worth it. Especially some pit bosses are purely there to power trip.
All of this could be built at Woodbine and kept there, , with shuttle buses taking people there; we DON'T need this here in downtown Toronto. Heck, it could even be built near Canada's Wonderland.
Casino + mega shopping mall: Progressive city building, 1992 style.
For Toronto, this is a pure cash grab in terms of property taxes and the payout by OLG for serving as a host city - which could be quite sizeable. This is why Rob Ford is pushing for this to be housed on city land. The City of Toronto's own report suggests, although I find it dubious, the fees generated from a potential casino at the MTCC or CNE could be enough to plug the 'fiscal hole' that is generated at the start of the year, before the City begins to collect revenues. For someone campaigning on fixing finances and the structural deficit, this is right up their alley - dubious or not.
If we must build a temple to the gods of chance, at the very least we should be financing, building and operating it ourselves to ensure that all the benefit isn't simply siphoned off to fill corporate coffers south of the line.
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