The Kansas City Star from Kansas City, Missouri • 25

WWWKANSASCITYCOM THE KANSAS CiTY STAR SATURDAY OCTOBER 18 2008 Ej SPEEDWAY: Casino construction intersects 1 courYesv of david campbeu- In years past the President riverboat was a familiar fight In St Louie As recently as the 1980s the boat was a passenger excursion vessel touring the Mississippi River It had home berths in St Louis and New Orleans 4 new defuse controversy over Boergefs remark he is no less adamant that a smoking ban could drive away as much as 20 percent of the custom- ers and cost state and local governments and die partners tens of millions of dollars a -yean 1 what has happened in other communities that have smoking Siiice smoking bans took effect Jan industry analysts report casino revenues are down 18 percent in Illinois and 11 per- cert in Colorado no reason to believe the result would be any different in Wyandotte- Weinberg said The Hard Rock partners esti-mate their project would gross around $350 million a yean More conservative consultants for the state have pegged the 'annual revenue at $222 million The state would get a minimum 22 percent of gross while local governments in Wyandotte County would share 3 percent 'The Unified Government has a substantial financial im terest in the success of the casino" Weinberg said simply has to understand a di- rect relationship between smoking bans and casino reve- rties don't dunk the Unified Government will pass a unilat- erai Weinberg added thihk ultimately common sense will The Unified Government hasdiscussed a smoking tan in Kansas City Kan for two years Earlier this yeatit released the results of a survey that showed 63 percent of the city's residents would support a ban But roughly half of the tespon-dents Said a ban should exempt bars and private dubs Reardon also said at the meeting that he hoped to consider a countywideban and an- nounced a public meeting Oct 30 on that issue with officials from Bonner Springs and Ed- wardsville The Mark Wlebe contributed to this report To reach Rick Aim call 816-234-4785 or send e-mail to die boat wont lose its National Landmark status do frown on us taking it he said But he said the plan is to maintain the historic appearance while adding water park and other attrac- tiohs sure hope they do see it our way" he said Interest in the project could get a boost next year when a film crew from London-based Windfall Films completes a documentary for its series that has chronicled the relocation of such massive objects as locomotives and ancient Egyptian temples and has been shown on the National Geographic and the Discovery channels An episode on moving the President could be ready as early as February The riverboat is to be hauled almost 75 miles inland in 15 massive pieces from the Mississippi River town of Alton to St Elmo To reach Rick Aim call 816-234-4785 or send e-mail to ralmkcstarcom The President which was an Icon In St Louis -will ba reassembled In control Illinois ByRtCXALM The Kansas City Star A historic riverboat With nostalgic' links to Missouri could be reborn a an 80-rctom hotel museum and event centerin a rural Illinois community The 300-fbot long steel President is currently being dismantled by an Alton QL shipyard and by late next year is expected to be reassembled and permanently docked at a pier on Tower Lake in St Elmo lit within eyeshot of nearby Interstate 1-70 It is a distinguished end for one of the first modem river-boat casinos in US history And her gambling career came after her designation in 1989 las a National Historic Landmark cited by the National Park Service as the last of her luxury kind and once largest excursion boat in Built and christened in 1924 as the Cincinnati the Presi- dent from the mid-1950s into the 1980s was a passenger excursion vessel operating on the Mississippi River from home berths in St Louis and Orleans Countless art- ists from Louis Armstrong to U2 performed on her decks By the late 80s the President was owned by Pittsburgh businessman John Connelly who was on the cutting edge of successful lobbying efforts to legalize riverboat gambling 1 in Iowa and Missouri At the time Connelly also owned the -aged Admiral riverboat in St Louis that became the President Casino on the Admiral Iowa was the first statl to take the riyerboat gambling 1991 when vessels there business among them the President in Davenport Iowa Connelly Sold it to Isle of Capri Casinos Inc a few years 1 later but the aging vessel soon was replaced and re- tired Refitting and recertify- issue FROM Cl cause the partnership to ref think the project Boerger did not return calls Ftitfeyi Id August Unified Government commissioners discussed three possible ban scenarios all of which included exemptions for casino floors But four of the 11 commissioners pressed for a comprehensive ban exceptions The board was scheduled to vote on a proposal but Mayor Joe Reardon set die measure aside for discussion only During debate Reardon urged eaution and warned that the Hard Rock would free competition from Missouri riv-erboats wheresjnoking is allowed on cariuflocus City and City would foil already in force only if all other casinos in the metro area did so If the Unified Government were to pass a ban Reardon could veto the measure -He could hot be reached Friday The- Hard Rock partners Soon may face a $25 million decision Their caSino manage- inert contract with tbe state is expected to win its final approval from the Kansas Racing and Gaming Commission before the end of the year Once that decision is made the partners could not cancel the project without forfeiting $25 mjllioh privilege fee already paid to the state The fee is refundable if die project is withdrawn before then 1 But once the contract is final Kansas Lottery director Ed Van Petten said the Hard Rock partners would free legal hurdles if they sought to downsize the project from its current 300 slots and 140 table games "The contract specifies they are to build a casino As proposed" he said would be bound to do The contract crafted over months of public hearings and approvals by several public bodies nongambling amenities Van Petten Said the casino portion is locked While Weinberg sought to THE DOW BOUNCES BACK I Monday up 93642 at 938761 I Tuesday 'down 7662 at 931099 I Wednesday down 73308 at 857791 (Thursday up 40135at 897926 I Friday down 12704 at 885222 friend because it enables the purchase of slice of future at a marked-down price" Buffett ranked the richest American by Forbes magazine has committed at least $28 billion' of cash this year to acquire companies finance buyouts and purchase securities as the' credit crisis drove down stock prices and sent firms searching for funds Since stocks began to tumble in September Berkshire has made large bets on US companies exacting rich dividend payments in the process Recent deals include multibillion-dollar stakes in Goldman Sachs and General Electric Co strawberry flavors It also includes family pack-size choco- late white chocolate straw- berry chestnut Hawaii chocO- late and Hawaii pineapple flavors Cookies were distributed nationwide and to Canada Melamine is the industrial chemicalblained for killing four infants and-sickening-54000 children in China It's used to make plastics and fertilizers I The Associated Press EQUITIES: Buffett is WORKERS: 500 are to leave KC but lawmakers Want plan dropped ing the boat for floating public service would cost an estimated $4 million Effingham Ill printer Da- vid Campbell said he discovered the neglected President in Memphis Tenn abop four years ago' and negotiated her purchase from Isle for $1 with a pledge to restore her wanted something really he said of the oldriv- erboat was an icpn in St "jj Campbell said he pitched his waterfront hotel idea to St Louis officials but drew little Civic interest Then enthusi- astic officials id the landlocked hamlet of St Elmo population 1400 stepped up with $2 million worth of in-' centives including city-owned landpnthe lake Campbell estimates the cost of converting and remodeling the historic boat as a permanently docked hotel and vis- itor attraction at around $9 million raised about half that sum and said looking for additional investors Campbell said hopeful operation to Indianapolis woulq 1101 save tile federal government money anticipate gaining any efficiency because not associated with the Defense Finance and Accounting Service" he said were transferred to the Marine Bond said he Cleaver and Graves want the Defense Department to reverse its decision elimination of over 200 jobs at the (Kansas City operation) because of bureaucratic uncommon sense is inexcusable" he said in a statement men and women who support our war fighters deserve far better" To reach Kevin Collison call 816-234-4289 or send a-mall to kcollisonkcstarcom Brooke also faces ongoing litigation from The Bank of New York Mellon which filed a lawsuit that triggered appointment The suit accused the Brooke companies and Robert Orr of fraudulently diverting at least $5 million The money was originally pledged as payments on investments in loans that Aleritas made to insurance 'agency buyers On who is no longer involved in operations has said that he relied on the advice of legal counsel and that he merely acted to recover fees -and expenses owed by investors to Brooke Capital To reach Dan MargoJics call 816-234-4481 or send e-mail to dmargolieskcstareom FROM a operation was included by mistake They say the affected Kansas City employees work directly for the Marines and are not employed by the agency that was to be consolidated under the commission plan the Defense Finance and Accounting Service objected to (the commission plan) because we work for the Swett said out numbers were included in DFAS and we were ordered to move The potential loss of jobs has caught the attention of Sen Kit Bond as well as Rep Emanuel Cleaver and Rep Sam Graves Hie three co-slgned a letter asking Gordon IL England deputy secretary of defense to buying Berkshire also is pursuing a deal with Constellation En- argy Buffett built Berkshire over four decades from a struggling textile manufacturer into a $180 billion holding company by buying out-of-frVor securi- ties and businesses As of June 30 Berkshire was the largest stockholder of Coca-Cola Co Wads Fargo A Col and Kralt Foods Inc Major Berkshire holdings with significant Kansas City area operations include Helzbarg Diamonds and Nebraska Furniture Mart Mutual funds and individuals mimic moves in an effort to duplicate his success An academic study in 2007 found that using this strategy for 31 years would have delivered annualized returns of about 25 percent double the gains of the 500 Buffett invoked a sports anal-ogyto explain his current view of the stock market quoting hockey legend Wayne advice to to where the-puck is going to be not to where it has been" Bloomberg News and The Associated Press contributed to this report FROM a mains down 375 percent since its record close on Oct 912007 "The stock market has finally realized one thing that the around the world thrown in a lot of money and using all the tools that they possibly to restore order to the credit mar- kets said Peter Cardillo chief market economist at Avalon Partners Inc a New York brokerage house sure well still have a strong biear grip to the market but I do believe the market was way oversold 1 do believe made a Stocks have taken a historic tumble in recent weeks amid a spreading credit crisis rooted in toxic mortgage-backed securities and widening concerhs about a global recession Referring to the- Great De- pression Buffett noted that the Dow reachedits nadir on July 8 1932 and economic conditions continued to deteriorate until Franklin IX Roosevelt became president in March 1933 But by that time the stock market had already climbed 30 pef-cent 1 Bad news Buffett wrote is the long-term best reconsider the move They noted that officials at the federal agencies involved have acknowledged that the Kansas City unit was not intended to be part of the commission realignment plan but their appeal was rejected by the Department of Defense of people in Kansas City have dedicated their careers to developing and maintaining the systems required to support thie Marine the congressmen wrote "The system they work on is highly complex and successful because of the knowl- edge base and continuity provided by the employees in Kansas City" Swett said the average salary of the workers scheduled to be transferred was $70000 to $50000 He said moving the the network and its Overland Park headquarters operations Since then Riederer has cut several dozen jobs at Brooke's offices in PhUlipsburg Kaiu and about 10 at the College Boulevard headquarters Earlier this week Riederer said about 120 employees re- mained Riederer said he ha secured short-term financing to keep operations going for at least a few more weeks and was working with Brooke agents who wished to sever their ties with the company Riederer said that a couple of hundred so £ar had sought and been granted releases trying to wind this thing down in an orderly fashion" he said BROOKE: Cookies from China recalled FROM a -The Brooke companies bought independent insurance agencies and other businesses from their owners with Aleri-tas funds and repackaged them as -Brooke agency franchises sold to entrepreneurs using money borrowed from Aleri-tas The Brooke companies also repackaged and resold the loans as securities to Street investors aiid to groups of mostly small Midwestern banks Earlier this year citing deteriorating credit market condi- tions "the companies effec- tively shut down their lending operations cut back support offered to franchise owners and began reducing the size of BATTLE CREEK Midi I A company is recalling March Cream-filled cookies from US shelves because they were -made in China and may he con- taminated with melamine Lotte USA InC said Friday that it initiated the recall on Sept 29 The Michigan-based company said it was not aware of any illnessesassociated with theproduct' The recall covers king-size chocolate white chocolate and 'ft f' kt Jr.