Wednesday, March 30, 2005
The Warren Republican is the area's first state legislator to oppose the casino.
WARREN -- State Rep. Randy Law of Warren, R-64th, says he's not supporting a proposed Indian gambling resort for Lordstown.
Law isn't backing the idea because its chances of becoming reality in Ohio are very slim, he said.
Casinos in Ohio are not a legislative priority in Columbus, he said.
Law also said he doesn't see the benefit of bringing gambling to the area.
"It's just not going to be an issue I feel we'll even be voting on. It's not an issue I'm wasting a lot of time and energy on," Law said Tuesday.
"I'm not in favor of it. Right now I don't see the benefit to us -- and it's not going to happen. There isn't enough consensus in Columbus."
Tribe's plan
Law sent a representative but wasn't present when the Eastern Shawnee Tribe of Oklahoma unveiled its plan Feb. 25.
On hand at the Trumbull County Administration Building in support at that time were the county's three commissioners, Mahoning Commissioner David Ludt; state Sen. Robert Hagan of Youngstown, D-33rd; state Rep. Sandra Stabile Harwood, D-65th; a representative of U.S. Rep. Tim Ryan, D-17th; and a host of labor representatives.
The Lordstown site is in Harwood's district.
Since then, Trumbull Commissioner Daniel Polivka also has withheld his support for the project. Polivka has said he'd prefer that state-level questions about the handful of casinos the tribe wants to sprinkle across Ohio are answered first.
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.
Law, a Republican serving his first term in a Democrat stronghold, said he's met with the proponents and opponents to listen and learn, and is always willing to listen to ideas from his constituents. There are, he said, very few ideas he'll shut the door on.
But the casino issue is a bigger issue locally than it is statewide, Law said, solely because of the suggested Lordstown venue. The state's budget is the all-consuming issue in Columbus these days, he noted.
If it weren't for the Lordstown angle, the casino venture would have attracted very little local interest, Law said.
"My true feeling right now is, it's not going anywhere unless it's going to the ballot," Law said.
That would require a sufficient amount of petitioners' signatures, he said.
For now, 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.
Resort planned
The Eastern Shawnees are talking about 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.
Also speaking opposed is the Rev. John Temple of North-Mar Church of the Christian and Missionary Alliance in Warren, who organized a large meeting of churches last week to discuss the issue.