YOUNGSTOWN Casino supporters want to send message to Taft

By DAVID SKOLNICK
VINDICATOR POLITICS WRITER
YOUNGSTOWN -- Supporters of a gambling casino in Youngstown want Gov. Bob Taft to get their message -- whether it be by letter, e-mail or fax.
The Casino for Youngstown Committee is asking those who want an Indian gambling casino in Youngstown to send messages to Taft during the week of Feb. 3 urging his support for the plan.
"We want to get the governor's attention," said Pat Mackondy, the committee's coordinator. "His signature will determine whether we'll have an Indian casino here or not."
The organization has been in contact with the Wyandotte Indian tribe, which once owned most of Ohio and is interested in opening a casino in the Mahoning Valley, Mackondy said. There are no federally recognized Indian tribes in Ohio, however, according to the state's attorney general's office.
Indian tribes operate about 300 casinos in 29 states.
The benefit of a casino would be significant for the Mahoning Valley and the entire state, he said. But a casino cannot come to Youngstown without the governor's approval, Mackondy said.
Revenues: The casino would give about 8 percent of its gross revenues from video lottery terminals, estimated at $20 million to $40 million annually, to the state and about 2 percent to local communities, estimated at $5 million to $10 million a year. Also, the casino would employ about 2,000 people and be a cornerstone for regional development, he said.
The group acknowledges that it faces an uphill battle. State officials have not shown any willingness to permit an Indian casino to be built in Ohio. State law does not permit casinos in Ohio, and state officials say there are no plans to change the law.
But Mackondy's group is not giving up.
"We want this so badly," he said. "We feel it will create jobs in an area that desperately needs them and it will attract a lot of other businesses to the area."
The Casino for Youngstown Committee also has established a Web site -- www.youngstowncasino.com -- that provides details about the group's plans as well as sample letters to be sent to Taft.
skolnick@vindy.com