by Steve Norton
CEO, Norton Management

South Carolina Casino Bill Has Small Odds of Becoming Law

My comment:

South Carolina has at least two locations where a resort casino could be very successful. A community near Charlotte and Myrtle Beach. Charlotte is a city with a population of over 2 million, and could easily support a destination casino. And Myrtle Beach, where I once worked at the Ocean Forest Hotel, is a Beach Resort, like Atlantic City, but with a warmer climate, and substantial air service; still hindering AC's ability to offset the loss of easy drive business from New York City, New Jersey and Maryland; by expanding the desirability of the City for National conventions and trade shows. Casino expansion to Eastern Philadelphia, slot machines at Yonkers and Aqueduct race tracks, and more recently casinos in Maryland,;have created gaming options to 98 percent of Atlantic City's previous market.

But Myrtle Beach's strong visitor population would offer an entertainment option that would improve existing hotel occupancies; while at the same time allowing Myrtle Beach to attract even more full rate, off season, mid-week convention demand. And casino gaming is not new to Myrtle Beach, although it was illegal, offered in a private room at the now demolished Ocean Forest Hotel. The casino was closed ,by the time I worked there; but Georgia also had an illegal casino on Lookout Mountain, at the Fairyland Club, where I lived and my Father Managed; had slot machines in the 1940's.

Slots were still operating in Virginia Beach in the 1950's; at the Sir Walter Hotel, that my Father also managed. And on the Maryland shore, slots were actually legal for many years.

Either site would support more than one casino, but by limiting the number of casinos will allow the State to elicit meaningful up front fees, a realistic casino tax rate and require meaningful casino resorts. I realize that the State is very conservative and religious, but you already have a State Lottery, which disproportionately taxes your low income residents. Casinos, if restricted to Myrtle Beach and the Northwest (near Charlotte), will be primarily taxing non residents, and would give you an opportunity of bring home the gambling dollars of South Carolina residents, now taking line run busses to Tribal casinos in Alabama and North Carolina; or flying to Florida, Biloxi or Las Vegas.