2010 saw Colliers International list the Battery Hotel and Suites for a figure of $15 million. The agency essentially challenged potential buyers to visualize how the property could be used and this included the use of the property that went against policies issued by the province. Newfoundland forms part of a pair of Canadian provinces that don’t have a legal land-based casino. According to Colliers, this is a situation that can be very interesting should any changes arise, as the property is large enough to accommodate a Class A hotel and casino.

The previous finance minister of Newfoundland, Tom Marshall, has stated that the policy of the province doesn’t allow for land-based casinos to legally operate. Marshall has also stated that there’s been no change in the policy and he’s unwilling to make any changes to it as he clearly stated that he won’t. 2014 saw Marshall elected as premier and the new finance minister at the time, Charlene Johnson, had implied to the media that the province would be willing to ponder on a decent offer.

She had also stated that the government would consider proposals regarding the casino; however, nothing was said about those proposals being approved. Despite all of this, the short burst of willingness to entertain the offer was a sign that the casino prohibition, one that had been in place since the early 1990s and was the law of the province, might not be stuck in place forever.

A redacted sender had forwarded an email to Dwight Bell that had the subject “$ Solution”, and it proposed the ensuing advice: Simple: Allow land-based casinos to be established. Attempt St. John’s and then transfer on to other cities. Lots of $ revenue and the citizens enjoy gambling. The issue with the email is that any province that enters the croupier game at this time would require a stronger argument than what was presented in the email.

There have been authorities that have opened casinos based on the possibilities of large profits and lots of new visitors; however, there are decades of information that prove that this is not the way to go when it comes to growing an economy.

An Unchanged Chance

At this moment, both Newfoundland and Labrador remain regions that are unchanged which makes this a prime prospect for casino operators to take advantage of. These are generally the same operators that take advantage of partnerships with provincial gambling bureaus in exchange for a large portion of the revenue.

Casino operators have attempted to contact the province since 1993; these include Sonco Gaming of Halifax, St. John’s Entertainment and Racing Centre, and a pair of businessmen from Nova Scotia. However, these operators don’t look at expenses and profits the same way that the government does and they are more concerned with generating decent revenue and won’t care if the money is being recycled from local citizens or gained from those that are visiting the region. And they know that there are only a handful of regions in the world that generate massive profits due to tourism.

It might be a coincidence, but the discussion of establishing a local casino has always appeared at a bad time as it has popped up after the 1992 cod freeze, and the gas and oil shock that had shaken the country during the mid-2010s. Now the province is in $2.1 billion debt and the concept may be thrown around once more.

Casino Expansion

The province of New Brunswick had only established a casino in 2010 and there has been a variety of new projects and expansions around the country, mostly in Ontario. However, the chances of Newfoundland and Labrador approving a casino are near impossible, but there has been a lot of interest from many operators as time had passed, so it’s not a buried concept – yet.

Casino critics are usually members of the public and not the local government, and the latter has stood against the concept of introducing gambling to Newfoundland and Labrador despite the desperate need for additional revenue and jobs. However, if you took a closer look, it would be due to the region’s strange relationship with gambling.

There is a lot of public support for the establishment of a casino in the region despite no political support. However, the odds of this happening are quite slim.

Other Issues

It has been said that St. John’s is a great casino market under “Project Matthew”, and under the direction of the former finance minister, there have been efforts to establish a business case for a land-based casino in St. John’s. However, another story that had later been released has stated that the assessment had been conducted by the ALC.

The study had stated that casinos can be deemed safe when led by an experienced management team. However, the target market was those located an hour away from the casino instead of tourists. With local crowds, this means that cash will be recycled with an estimated revenue that lies between C$20 and C$40 million, but it wouldn’t have the same effect as new money that would come from tourists.

There is also a range of underlying issues, especially when it comes to the gambling history of those living in the region as the province is known for having plenty of people with unhealthy gambling habits. Essentially the province can’t afford to open a casino and despite the potential to generate a profit, the risk would heavily outweigh the reward.

With the province already in debt, putting people with unhealthy gambling habits in debt to generate a profit is borderline unethical. Casinos also have higher betting ranges, and unlike VLT’s which have a maximum betting limit of C$2.50, casinos could allow people to spend hundreds of dollars in a single visit. With a casino in the region, those that would want to gamble would likely have gone broke and this would throw a huge spanner in the works of the casino and it could end up shutting down over the next few years.