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NORTON NOTES: AC Recovery Needs Air Service
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by Steve Norton
CEO, Norton Management
Atlantic City continues to recover from 'lost decade' | Top Stories | pressofatlanticcity.com
I admire the Atlantic City Government for trying to attract new types of commercial activity; which should be helped by the decline in land prices. In fact is may be possible to build affordable housing, that does not require a subsidy. But as for the resort/gaming attractions of AC, we have two strikes against us.
NORTON NOTES: Casinos should operate VGTs in PA
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by Steve Norton
CEO, Norton Management
Effort to legalize video gaming in bars is back with broader support | PennLive.com
If Pennsylvania's 40,000 illegal VGT's are actually finding a way to pay winners in prizes, convertible into cash, then these are major competition to the legal casinos. These machines are being operated by tavern owners, that have been harmed by recent changes, that allow grocery stores to sell beer and wine. But these machines would be far more profitable if legal and operated out in the open; even with a tax involved.
NORTON NOTES: FL Should Save Gaming Expansion for Later
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by Steve Norton
CEO, Norton Management
Florida lawmakers say they're ready to negotiate a gambling compromise | Miami Herald
I expect the Senate and House would agree that the state needs more tax revenue from gaming. And the Seminole Tribe has offered a large increase in their annual contribution, as long as the Legislature doesn't change the law that restricts slot machines only to tracks and frontons in Broward and Miami-Dade counties; plus allows their larger casinos to add the games of Roulette and Craps. Which would allow them to compete on even terms with casinos in the US, Canada, Central America and the Islands of the Caribbean and the Bahamas.
Plus the addition of these two games will make Miami/Ft. Lauderdale, Palm Beach and Tampa more attractive for the convention/ trade show markets, that have allowed incredible growth in resort casino demand on the Las Vegas Strip; where the non gaming departments now out-earn their casinos. The latest info I have shows the 23 larger Strip resorts enjoyed occupancies of 92.1 percent, with room rates of $163, and just under 35 percent of the resort revenues coming from the casino, and only 27 percent of the departmental earnings. I was Sheldon Adelson's President/COO of the Sands, when we opened the Sands Expo Center. And we needed to find rooms to house 170,000 exhibitors and attendees for the Computer Industry's Trade Show, Comdex, which Sheldon's company also owned. Well my job description quickly changed to a booking agent, as resort casinos liked in-house conventions, but did not like shows where the attendees has no time or interest in a casino visit. I negotiated with my fellow resort/casino executives, and we came up with a compromise. We would triple the mid-week room rate to $150, and book all of the meeting space of the larger resorts (as well as all of the space at the LV Convention Center). We would also provide them a large number of profitable functions and indicated their gourmet restaurants would be full of cash rather than comp customers.
The Senate could follow the House lead, and stop Greyhound racing, and bring the dog track tax on slots win back to the original 50 percent rate or even raise it to 60 percent (Maryland casinos were profitable with a 67 percent slot tax, and one casino invested $500 million in their casino, restaurant and entertainment facilities. And the actual tracks could be sold for real estate development; and even without slots, the central and Northern dog tracks and frontons, should remain profitable; just with poker and pari-mutual betting. The 4 horse tracks are an important amenity for the Florida visitor, and as long as the 3 Southern tracks have slots, they should remain profitable; and Tampa Bay Downs, without slots, should get some of the slot tax as a subsidy. Looking at recent State pari-mutual reports, Jai Alai has a very small audience like the Greyhounds, and should be allowed to stop live performances.
Any attempt to allow slot machines, outside of Miami/ Ft Lauderdale, puts the multi $billion Compact between the State and the Seminole Tribe at risk; with the Federal Courts likely to rule in the Tribes favor. Better to put aside any thoughts of gaming expansion in the State, until a future date, and give the voters a chance to say yes or no in a new referendum.
NORTON NOTES: Bermuda
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Crockwell: gaming dispute 'not helpful' | The Royal Gazette:Bermuda News
Casino Gaming was introduced by Premier Brown, back in 2010 and 2011; as an important amenity to increase Island tourism. In 2014, a study by the Innovations Company, projected that casino gaming would increase visitor arrivals by 43,000, and casinos would win $50 million in the first year; based on the Islands 10,000 rooms (a number I find difficult to reach).