The Kansas City Star from Kansas City, Missouri • 12

V' -V o' s-vv (is fiSUl SATURDAYSEPTEMBER 20 2008 CASINOS FROMTHE COVER a Dec 6 to (carinoMyroll dwarfs that" he said- Tne payroll will be five times vriial the state: local 1 governments wift get combined -7 The foal win is to capture dm jobs for Wyandotte Comtty workers" Gov Kathleen Sebelius who with All as her chief counsel at foe tune began pushim for casino gamhling during her first term sab) she was pleased the state of the na- tirmal economy is very different than it was two years ago we think gaming in Kansas is going to he a great success These new attractions are im-portant to their locSal communities as they will create jobs boost tourism and generate revenue? Unified Government Mayor Joe Reardon hailed de- cision as foe end of a long road and the beginning of another -'y citizens worked fin 15 years to win foe legislation which allows the casino" he said The KCK casino will be foe premier gaming destination in the along with nearby attractions such as the speedway Village West and the I agenda shopping and din- fog and die Schhtterbahn Vacation Village water park "KCK and Wyandotte County will be the place for conventions -entertainment family fan shopping and din- ing" said Reardon lb reach RJck Aim cal 8W34-' 4785 or sand a-rnad to ralmkcstarcom To raach David KlapparcaU a -785-3544388 or sand a-mal to westofJoplinMo But Pennsyfoania-based Penn recently walked away from the deal citing competition from foe nearby tribal Downstream Casino that onened in Tulv State officials arenow scheduled to meet Tuesday to discuss reopening bidding in that southeast gambling zone Karaas gambling law enacted last year authorized one casino eadi in Wyandotte Ford arid ether Sedgwick or Sumner aod Crawford or Cherokee counties It also audio- raced slot machines at The Woodlands and two other pari- Although private companies will finance build -and operate die casinos the state law upheld by the Kansas Supreme' Court earlier this year declared that the state towns" die JKSS of gambling The state will get a minimum 22 percent cut of gross revenue with an additional 5 percent off the top for local host governments and a state fund to aid compulsive gamblers OSidals had hoped the casinos and tracks would eventu- ally generate $200 milliofc a year new tax dollars T' Now it appears Vgn will have just three casinos and fewer tax dollars State Sen Chris Steineger a Kansas City Kan Democrat who has been engaged in the city's casino effort since he worked in foe dty office in the early 1990s said Friday he was not worried about foe state's tax hauL talks about how much numey foe state is going to get or Wyandotte County is DAVID EUUTT I THE CITY STAR Employ! from Kansas Speedway dressed In yellow Hard Rock Casino T-sMrts ap- 1 plauded the decisive vote Friday In Tbpeke In favor of the speedway Jackie Vietti After vote Kennedy whose family also owns and controls NASCAR said her goal was to have a second cup race scheduled in Kansas by the time the Hard Rock casino opens Thia would appear to put the first expanded race schedule at Kansas Speedway into the 2011 aeaaoa Last month the review board awarded contracts to a group that included Harnhli Entertainment Inc to build and operate a casino in Sumner County near MuKane Kan also rawved a contract with Perm Natkmal promised an infield road course for sports car racing and an annual Camping Warld national HV rally At the time All publicly -scolded the speedway group 1 for adding to its deal that were not spelled out in its formal contract that the board was obligated to con- sider But Friday he Med to per-r suade any board-member to' join him in forcing the contract back Into negotiations to get those sweeteners in writing "There has to be trust some- where in this said board member Garry Boston who voted for the speedway plan with All Dean Enroll and up their sleeves "We have a 1997 he ristar ing with 2008 got to invest a lot more money to have what 1 have "That allows us to focus bur capital in other places" he said including more goodies for players One' contentious issue wrapped up in foe speedway proposal was a pledge last month by Lesa France Ken-' nedy International Speedway Corp president to stage a sec-' ond NASCAR cup race in but only ifthe speedway won the casino The speedway group also the lone rural in County just tr it v'fc SMR JUSTTAKEM! NEW PRICE REDDQDCTDSDNS FROM A1 i $705 million i chosen byafbur to three vote for a 15-year con-- tract to build and manage a state-owned casino in dotte County Matt All review board man cast the deciding vote He called foe speedway tourism potential "a once-in-a- lifetime opportunity an iconic symbol in Kansas" Golden Gaming owner Blake Sartini one of two jilted suitors for the state's contract war gracious in defeat after draw- ing votes from board members James Bergfalk Bob Boaldin andJackBrier speedway was a great proposal" said Sartini "In the 'end Kansas City woo with any of foe proposals" A plan advanced by the Connecticut-based Mohegan tribe and RED Development builders and managers of the Leg-" ends entertainment and retail district on the speedway's north side drew compliments -but no votes Despite Friday's vote the Hard Rock Hotel Casino is not a done deal Executives with the speedway and parent International Speedway Corp -and paijner Cordish Co must undergo background vetting:" and approval by the Kansas Racing and Gaming COmmis- sion by the state's Dec 6 dead- line r' Boerger said Friday that planning would begin iq ear- nest for an interim casino at foe speedway that would open by June with 2j000 slots and 75 table games The entire project northwest of Interstates 70 and 435 is scheduled to open- in 2011 The Review Board also deferred a decision on which of two applicants tp pick for a ca- sino in Dodge City until Friday The board is seeking more fi- nancial details fiom foe appli-cants' -Rep Tom Burroughs a Kan- sas City Kan Democrat who watched gambling bills foil in the Kansas Legislature for more than a decade applauded landmark decision Tm very excited that in this economic downturn we have people who really want to in- vest in he said With foe promise of two an- nual NASCAR laces and other new motor-sports and tourism attractions the speedway's Hard Rock-' casino and hotel will offer slots 140 table games 300 hotel rooms and more than 275000 square feet of new retail dining and entertainment attractions choreographed by Cordish the Baltimore-based developer of Kansas Power Light District Missouri-side casino operators are sure to watch the Hard progress warily The Hard gambling capacity will exceed that of the local current big dog Ameristar Kansas City Casino and Hotel which has 184 hotel rooms 3005 slots and 105 table games The new casino promises to pose a formidable challenge in Kansas crowded gambling marketplace where four Missouri-based riverboat casi- -nos last year raked in $720 million from gamblers 'State consultant Cummings Associates in one scenario estimated Hard appeal could grow the overall Kansas City casino market by about $94 million a year to $814 mil- lion But the consultants noted the $241 million they estimate as Hard Rock's share could in- elude as much as $174 million a year matched away from Kan- sas Cits casinos Area riverboats wont sit still for a fiscal raid on that scale and can be to enhance their physical plants and player reward programs But too early for them to tip their hands That is said Ameris- -tar executive Troy Stremming of the dollars at stake "But that 170 million talking about coming out of Missouri is based on the current regulations in Missouri" including the $500 loss limit he said we have the same set of rules we can compete with anybody" Stremming said And that is why the Missouri casino industry is pressing for repeal of foe loss limits on the November ballot this year Stremming added that Missouri casinos have another ace i I A' LADIES' JUNIORS 7 Classic American Designer Nygard Collection Famous NY Designers Silver Jeans Hot Kiss Love Rocks Moa Moa Darlin City Triangle Takara IN $ari Francisco Morel OHg 40-Si 56 1 END OF SUMMER CLEARANCE Summer Apparel Men's Women's Children's Juniors1 is 0n (uu "rtjwi wax oatk e-an aen- I aft HMMk 8nnHMII mamift ft ForYbur Convenience We Accept Your Dillard's Charge Visa MasterCard American Bqniess Discover Carte Btemche Or Club Card A OAK fWK INDEPB4DENCE 'V Shop Monday Through Saturday 10 AM 9 Sunday 1 2 Noon-6PM'- Shop Metro North Clearance Center Mondiay Through Saturday 1 1 AM-7 PM Sunday 1 2 Noon 6 PM A.