To Jim Amann, the recent talk of expanding gaming in Connecticut beyond the walls of the southeastern casinos is like the celebratory sound of winning slots to a gambler’s ears.
«It’s nothing but good news,» said Amann of Milford, the ex-state House Speaker who now lobbies for Bridgeport’s Shoreline Star, a horse-racing simulcast operation.
Amann and some Democratic colleagues from Bridgeport want the state to allow Shoreline to boost business by offering slot machines.
The biggest obstacle has been Connecticut’s pact with the two Indian casinos — Foxwoods and Mohegan Sun — that gives the state a 25 percent cut of the profits in exchange for the tribes’ having a monopoly on gaming.
But the economy, coupled with increased competition from Massachusetts and New York, has reduced the casinos’ profits.
In 2007, the state’s share stood at $430 million. It has been steadily decreasing and is projected by state analysts to drop to $212 million by 2018.
Last week, Mohegan tribe officials reportedly opened the door for gaming negotiations with the Legislature.
«We need to do something in the face of development of Massachusetts gaming,» Kevin Brown, the Mohegan tribe’s chairman, told the CT Mirror. «To do otherwise would be short-sighted on our part.»
War games
Bridgeport in the past has been a battleground for a casino, with proponents viewing the entertainment meccas as a means for economic salvation, and opponents worried about the related social ills and increased traffic along congested Interstate 95.
But Connecticut’s largest city’s gaming fever — or envy — is greatly diminished since the debates of the 1990s. One of the prime locations for a casino, the long-dormant Steel Point property along the harbor, is finally moving forward with a different high-profile draw for an anchor tenant: Bass Pro Shops of Missouri.
Reopening the state’s gaming pacts with the Indian tribes, however, is seen as a golden opportunity for those pushing for more modest, slot-machine facilities to make their case.
«It will create some jobs that will benefit Bridgeport,» said Mario Testa, the city’s veteran Democratic chairman. «Bridgeport should be a part of it.»
Testa acknowledged now is not the right time to build a casino in Bridgeport.
«We should be looking more at the slot machines than the entire casino itself,» Testa said. «With the economy going today, definitely you don’t want to open it up to high roll. Look what’s happened to Atlantic City (with its failing casinos)? We don’t want another white elephant.»
The way Amann envisions it, his former colleagues in the Legislature could broker a deal with the Indian tribes that would in some way see them partner with Shoreline Star, along with similar facilities in New Haven and Hartford, and lure visitors there with the Foxwoods and Mohegan brands.
Shoreline Star in particular, Amann said, would help plug the revenue losses the casinos are experiencing from residents on either side of the Fairfield County/New York border who have chosen shorter drives to work the slots at Resorts World Casino in New York City. And then Shoreline Star, the state and casinos would all share in the revenues.
«You could put slots in those buildings immediately,» Amann said. «You don’t need to build another multimillion (dollar) casino.»
«We’re getting invaded,» Amann said. «What does a good army do? Protect its borders. And you have facilities capable of doing it tomorrow.»
Place your bet
One of the most vocal allies of the plan is state Sen. Andres Ayala, D-Bridgeport, who last year co-chaired a task force that examined expanded gaming opportunities.
Ayala said the casinos hold the cards. So if in fact they want to talk, he is more than prepared.
