The state of Maine has been making the headlines recently as it is about to have its two new casinos established. A few days ago, several members of the Legal Affairs Committee and the Maine Legislature Veterans have settled down around the idea of revealing details, concerning the survey that proposes the state to add another two casinos to the existing ones and make some changes, concerning the local gambling affairs as well.
The expenses for the study were estimated to cost the state well over $150,000. The study itself was conducted by WhiteSand Gaming – a prominent New Jersey-based company providing advisory services and casino management.
The survey suggested the most convenient and beneficial locations where the future casinos could be located. The area located near the Interstate 95 corridor in Southern Maine is believed to be appropriate for establishment of a luxurious, spacious casino resort. The second one was proposed to be situated either in Washington or in the Aroostook counties.
For the time being, there are two casinos available on the territory of the state, respectively in Oxford and in Bangor.
Another thing the survey put emphasis on was the contribution of Maine authorities when it comes to providing casino venues with equal rights and responsibilities. The survey recommended gambling authorities to establish standardized criteria in order to determine how much each venue is supposed to pay.
The survey recommended the annual fees to be based on the number of table games and slot machines available.
Although the majority of committee members support the establishment of new casinos, some of them disapproved of the proposal and shared their concerns with the rest.
Diane Russell commented the issue and said that in case there is no demand for gambling activities in the southern part of Maine, then, there is no point in establishing a casino resort in that area. She also added that the top priority of Maine authorities should be concentrating all their efforts on the state’s well-being in general.
John Patrick, Senator of Maine, had no hesitations in repeating his standpoint. As he has already mentioned, he does not consider the expansion of the gambling sector in the southern part of Maine to have a devastating impact on the industry in the other regions.
Senator Patrick considers the information the report issued by WhiteSand contains to pinpoint the potential risk to Oxford Casino as it may lose between 20 and 40% of its annual revenue. According to the reports released by the American Legion and VFW the revenues generated from bingo are already getting smaller.
Several politicians also expressed their concerns about the future expansion of the gaming market in the state. According to them, such an important decision should be made by the state residents via elections. Governor Paul LePage even said that he is not quite convinced that the establishment of two more casinos is the right approach towards remedying the economic chaos in the state.
