Société de jeux Great Canadian oversees venues in Ontario, British Columbia, and Atlantic Canada spreading its influence across the country. Gaming revenue allocations are among the most accurate indicators of a potential issue and interest drop of a given venue. This became evident at Shorelines Casino Thousand Islands thanks to the lower than expected CA$1.5 million annual non-tax gaming allocation it guaranteed.
One of the positive impacts a casino venue operation could have on a given host community is the regular allocations equating to a portion of the gaming revenue generated by the casino venue. Shorelines Casino Thousand Islands is capable of supporting both Gananoque and the Township of Leeds and the Thousand Islands with its operation. The revenue generated at the said gaming venue was lower when compared to the performance over the previous fiscal year.
Gaming Revenue Drop Results in Smaller Allocations
The two communities bagged a total of CA$1.5 million as a result of the operation of Shorelines Casino Thousand Island over the past 12 months. When compared to the performance in the 2017 fiscal year, there is a CA$400,000 drop in the allocation. Back then, it reached CA$1.7 million showing a steady decline in the casino cash flow over the past years.
According to the agreement arranged between Great Canadian Gaming Corporation and the two neighboring communities, some 2.63 percent of the gaming revenue generated by slot machines available on site would be shared with the municipalities. In addition to that, table games also share 2 percent of their gaming revenue with the neighboring host communities.
Once this is done, they have the chance to put the cash to good use and invest it in various local projects, renovations, beautifications, and roadworks. Société des loteries et jeux de l'Ontario is responsible for the distribution happening on a regular basis. It should be pointed out, that the casino operator refused to discuss the reasons for this revenue drop.
Municipality Mayors Express Concerns
Andy LaCroix, Executive Director of Stakeholder Relations for Ontario, made it clear that weather conditions took their toll during the fourth quarter of the fiscal year. The casino operator has the right to refuse to share more details on the revenue drop and the reasons for the current situation. In the meantime, mayors of the two municipalities are also unaware of what caused the revenue drop.
Belleville is located some 100 km from Thousand Islands and this could be the reason why revenue plunged over the past twelve months. Some casino patrons prefer the newer Shorelines Casino located in Belleville. The CA$41-million venue welcomed its firsts players in January 2017 which inevitably led to a CA$181,000 drop in the municipal payments to the Township of Leeds and the Thousand Islands and Gananoque.
Corinna Smith-Gatcke is Mayor of the Township of Leeds and the Thousand Islands and she pointed out that expectations have to be as realistic as possible down the road. Meanwhile, Gananoque Mayor Ted Lojko expressed concerns regarding this plunge. He also mentioned previous Great Canadian Gaming property tax appeal seeking to lower the taxes by two-thirds. The issue could span over the following couple of years.
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