Victoria City Councilors have decided on Thursday to move forward with the plan for a potential establishment of a full-scale gambling venue downtown. The casino may be built in the city’s Crystal Garden or on nearby land.
City officials will now send a letter to the British Columbia Lottery Corporation, known to be the organization in charge of all gambling operations conducted within the province’s borders, in order to express interest for the construction of a gambling facility in the city.
Crystal Garden and nearby property are listed as the preferred locations for the new casino. Several other areas in Victoria are also mentioned as suitable hosts to the venue, if approval for its establishment is granted.
If a casino is launched in Victoria, it has been estimated that it will annually generate between C$30 million and C$45 million in gaming revenue. In that case, the city is to receive up to C$2.5 million every year in tax revenue.
Although the casino proposal was supported by the majority of Victoria’s officials, it met certain opposition. Several City Councilors pointed out that a gambling venue would have quite a negative effect on adjacent businesses. Yet, they admitted that the proposal would probably gain momentum and it would be difficult to prevent it from being materialized.
Last year, the British Columbia Lottery Corp. made certain inquiries, the results from which showed that a second full-fledged gambling venue in the region, particularly one located in downtown Victoria, would be a profitable endeavor. View Royal Casino was the first casino to open doors in the capital region.
Commenting on the news about the Victoria City Council’s decision to move the plan forward, Mayor Lisa Helps told media that seeking a dialogue on the matter with the British Columbia Lottery Corp. was the right thing to do and that keeping doors open for a new casino and getting more information was a good idea.
Saanich, known to be the largest district municipality on the Vancouver Island, also plans to send a letter containing a list with potential sites for a gambling venue in the region to the gambling corporation,.
It is yet to be determined whether a casino would be built eventually and where exactly it would be built. However, prior to proceeding to construction, any casino project would be subjected to the necessary rezoning and public response processes as well as to related studies.
