Minister hopes to mobilize opponents

This is not the pastor's first fight against gambling.
WARREN -- North-Mar Church of the Christian and Missionary Alliance will open its doors next Thursday to representatives from 180 churches in Trumbull and Mahoning counties, to tell them why casino gambling is wrong for the Mahoning Valley.
Speaking will be David Zanotti, director of the Ohio Roundtable, an organization that asked Ohio's attorney general and auditor to review actions by local governments around the state regarding the Eastern Shawnee Tribe of Oklahoma's plans to build seven to nine casinos. One could be in Lordstown.
The Rev. John A. Temple, North-Mar's senior pastor, said churches have a very significant role in moral issues and should be part of discussion on the casino issue.
"We want our church leaders to understand what it's about," he said. "I'm just against gambling, but this one particularly. It's just economic bad news."
North-Mar church ministers to 2,000 people, three times on Sunday. Trumbull County Commissioner Daniel Polivka, a member, has declined to support the Shawnee's proposal until state-level questions about it are resolved.
Fought simulcast races
The Rev. Mr. Temple in 2001 was active in Hope for the Valley, a clergy-based group that fought Northfield Park Associates, owners of a harness racing track near Cleveland that applied for a state license to operate a parlor in Eastwood Mall for simulcast harness and thoroughbred races. More than half of county voters supported a five-year ban on the activity.
"What authority do elected officials have to go out and solicit something we have said no to?" he asked of those backing the tribe's efforts this year. "The people of Lordstown didn't vote on it, the people of Trumbull County didn't vote on it."
Mr. Temple is attending public meetings, using the church's Web site and opening the church at 7 p.m. next Thursday for the casino debate.
"It's not my battle. There are a lot of people out there who don't like this," he said. "You've got to look at all the facts in this when you study it."
The Eastern Shawnees have unveiled a proposal for a $125 million to $250 million gambling resort. It could be on 137 acres northeast of the Ohio Turnpike, between Exit 216 and state Route 45. The tribe and those politicians supporting it say between 2,500 and 3,500 people are expected to be employed in service and management jobs paying $30,000 to $32,000 a year.
There's also supposed to be revenue sharing of about $4 million a year for both the village and the county. This money would be generated by 2 percent of the casino's revenue and used for schools, charities and infrastructure.
"I call it the Trojan horse that promises Disneyland glamor. It gives that Disneyland appeal to people," Mr. Temple said. "It offers a lot of promise, seems like the deal to go with. When you throw out $4 million to people who are struggling, it just seems like the answer."
He maintains that the 2 percent of revenue is only from slot machines and not from food, hotel or other games; and that the low-cost food, lodging and fuel that would be offered to draw gamblers to the casino would actually hurt local businesses.
"They might be spending it at the casino rather than at the mall," Mr. Temple said. "If you think for one minute that people are going to stop at Dairy Queen and say, 'Hey let's get a Blizzard before going to the casino,' or after the casino stop at DQ, I mean -- come on."
Mr. Temple said the $30,000 income is an average and that the majority of jobs will pay less than $10 an hour. If the casino operates as a sovereign Indian state and employs a lot of tribe members, they won't be paying taxes, he said.
The tribe, its consultants and developers are the only ones that would realize real financial gain if the venture succeeds, he said.
More questions
Mr. Temple also said the social impact of gambling isn't being discussed "because our eyes have been blinded by the dollars." He worries about increased numbers of bankruptcy, divorce and absenteeism at work.
The pastor further questioned how casino gambling can help the outside perception that the Mahoning Valley appears to have "a cloud of corruption" over it. "I find it ironic that while the federal government is diligently working at cleaning up the corruption of this valley, casino gambling is being promoted by our elected officials," he said.
On hand when the plan was announced Feb. 25 were Trumbull's three commissioners, Mahoning Commissioner David Ludt; state Sen. Robert Hagan of Youngstown, D-33rd; state Rep. Sandra Stabile Harwood, D-65th; representatives of U.S. Rep. Tim Ryan, D-17th, and state Rep. Randy Law, R-64th; and a host of labor representatives.
Attorney General Jim Petro and Auditor Betty Montgomery both oppose expansion of gambling; they're also seeking the Republican Party's nomination for governor next year. A constitutional amendment to allow full-service casino gambling or an expansion of the state lottery with slot machines in horse racing tracks are the only avenues available to proponents.
Mr. Temple thinks the intergovernmental agreements being worked on across the state will be shown to as many legislators as possible in an effort to show casinos are what people want, even though such Class 3 gambling is now illegal in Ohio. "You're engaging in a contract that you hope someday will become legal," he said.