New casino site picked in Franklin Co.
Plan would be competition for Fort Dodge casino backersBy BILL SHEA, Messenger staff writer
DOWS - A patch of ground near Interstate 35 east of Dows has emerged as the latest potential location for an Iowa casino.
The new proposal for a Franklin County gaming venue would be the closest competition for a planned casino in Fort Dodge.
If it's built, the casino would employ about 400 people, and many of them would likely come from neighboring Wright County.
However, the Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission has yet to decide if there will be any additional casinos. Members of that panel are expected to decide during their July 16 meeting in Altoona if they will accept applications for any new casino licenses.
Steve Daniel, a spokesman for Fort Dodge Gaming LLC, said the revised Franklin County proposal won't change the group's plans. However, if there is a chance to apply for new licenses, the closeness of the two sites would alter the dynamics of the competition for a casino, he said.
''The closer they get to Fort Dodge, the more they'll compete with us directly,'' Daniel said. ''It would be an issue for us.''
''Fort Dodge is prepared to put together the best possible project for our community, and we expect Franklin County will do the same,'' he added. ''We'll compete with anybody head to head.''
The proposed casino site is roughly 60 miles from Fort Dodge.
Ottumwa, where business leaders are also hoping to apply for a casino license, is about180 miles from Fort Dodge.
The Wild Rose Casino and Resort in Emmetsburg is roughly 70 miles from Fort Dodge.
Dows, which is in Wright County, is the nearest city to the new casino site. A referendum vote on casino gambling has never been held in Wright County. In Franklin County, voters approved gaming in a 2004 referendum.
The Franklin County casino was originally to be located farther north near the junction of Interstate 35 and Iowa Highway 3.
The site was moved for two reasons, according to Roger Burnett, of Rockford, who is a member of the group which would own the casino. He said a change in state law means the casino would not have to be on water. The site near Iowa Highway 3 included a lake. He added that the previous site has been sold.
A casino at the location near Dows would provide jobs and the possibility of adding better housing in Wright County, according to Dennis Bowman, that county's economic development director.
''That has been an area that has lost employees, that has lost population, so that would be a nice situation to beef that area up,'' he said.
''Anytime you can get more tourists in and more people in to energize one of our communities, it helps all of us,'' Bowman added.
In 2005, state regulators declined to issue a license for the proposed Mineral City Hotel and Casino in downtown Fort Dodge.
Fort Dodge Gaming LLC is inclined to place a casino near a highway rather than downtown. A site has not been picked. The proposal calls for a casino, a hotel and a large hall for concerts and other events. About 350 people would work there.
Contact Bill Shea at (515) 573-2141 or bshea@messengernews.net
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Anderson
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07-03-09 10:58 PM
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Or how about a "Chicken Ranch" in one of those old hotels; talk about revitalization of downtown!
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Random
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07-03-09 6:00 AM
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Hey, I'm not from here originally, but i like the name "Little Chicago." We need to turn what was originally a negative into a positive. Last time i checked, Big Chicago was not suffering because of its name. Maybe some of the small town hicks in the sticks around here think Little Chicago is scary, but I think that it provides a cosmopolitan allure for our city. Oh, and I just can't understand why anyone would be opposed to a casino in this town. I hardly ever gamble myself, but the revenue and excitement and entertainment a casino would generate would be phenomenal. It would be the perfect way to revitalize downtown, if it is located there.
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fdeastsidr
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07-02-09 1:17 PM
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since someone mentioned the aquatic center, how come there is NO work being done. some dirt got moved a few weeks ago, but the site has been desserted. if it is to open next year, shouldn't someone be working on it?
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Anderson
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07-02-09 12:55 PM
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None of those "externalities" is wealth producing, Random, but more misallocation (waste?) of personal income that might be wealth producing were not all the incentives for REAL investment in Iowa not negative.
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Random
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07-02-09 1:17 AM
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We need this casino, not simply for the gaming revenue, but all of the positive externalities; i.e., hotels, restaurants, and entertainment venues that will emerge as a result of a casino. We voted in favor of having a casino overwhelmingly several years ago and were denied by state regulators for no good reason. I think we need to market this town as "Little Chicago" and use that as a promotional device for getting a casino. Its time we embraced a city nickname and turned it into a positive attribute for this town. Oh, for the sake of downtown, I would hope that the casino would be located in that vicinity.
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strandediniowa
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07-01-09 11:47 PM
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Get it done, ya might as well! Fort Dodge has it's thumb buried!
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Anderson
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07-01-09 8:10 AM
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Ditto here; i.e. it is much better to pay for necessary govt services - even the inevitable bureaucratic waste - directly than to be fleeced surreptitiously via gambling. The cost, both financial and human, to the community is much less with taxes.
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