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OLG Toronto/GTA casino proposal (where to put it?)

But they pay no tax while you slave to pay your gov't. What is it...the first 7 months of EVERYTHING you make goes to the gov't here? (When is tax freedom day in Ontario?)

I'd rather lose the right to chew gum, but gain the right to keep the money I earn in my pocket.
 
Well, why don't you move there then since it's so wonderful?

I prefer to live in a society where I do have the right to say what I want, chew what I want and even spit if I want without fear of injury or loss of life.
 
You only have the right to pay as much tax as you are told. To buy liquor where you are told. Make sure not to park a few minutes when the metre has expired. Not drive too fast. etc etc

If you think you are "free" because you can chew gum, well than it explains the sorry state of your city.

Oh, and I was overseas during the G20 debacle (when innocent people were herded like cattle).... shocking.... so yeah, so much for you being as "free" as you think.
 
As for the casino... it WILL go up. So if some of you were against it because of problems it would cause, won't the close proximity it's going to be for the City anyway, going to cause all the same problems?

Or do you think putting it 15-20 minutes away is not going to cause the City the exact same amount of (supposed) problems you kept mentioning?

Markham and Vaughan are just laughing. Multi billion investment, thousands of jobs, fees, taxes etc.
 
Well, if one follows the comings and goings of Singapore, one'd realize things aren't as rosy as they seem to be. As to Markham and Vaughan getting it, well, we'll just have to wait and see now do we?

AoD
 
AlvinofDiaspar said:
Well, if one follows the comings and goings of Singapore, one'd realize things aren't as rosy as they seem to be. As to Markham and Vaughan getting it, well, we'll just have to wait and see now do we?

AoD
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Singapore is in excellent financial shape compared to Toronto. Or do you think Toronto is in better financial shape?

As for the casino...I am not a gambler, nor do I like any gaming, but once the province is already in the gaming business, it makes no sense to vote down a casino in Toronto (on the basis of it causing too many social, economic etc problems), when it very well may end up on your doorstep.

A mega casino in Markham or Vaughan is worse for Toronto than a mega casino in the 416 area.
 
Sure, and Singapore is also a nation state, with its' own borders, policies, geopolitical context - I will be interested to know what happens if the GTA can divorce itself in a similar manner. Besides, financial shape isn't the measure of all things.

A mega casino in Markham or Vaughan is worse for Toronto than a mega casino in the 416 area.
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That's assuming one will be built in Markham or Vaughan, which is by no means assured. And I am saying all this as someone who is mildly pro in the first place.

AoD
 
AlvinofDiaspar said:
Sure, and Singapore is also a nation state, with its' own borders, policies, geopolitical context - I will be interested to know what happens if the GTA can divorce itself in a similar manner. Besides, financial shape isn't the measure of all things.



That's assuming one will be built in Markham or Vaughan, which is by no means assured. And I am saying all this as someone who is mildly pro in the first place.

AoD
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I am actually very against gambling and gaming. But if Markham or Vaughan (I suspect Vaughan) get one, it will be a disaster for Toronto.

Btw, I wish the GTA could divorce itself from the province.
 
GenerationW said:
I gotta hear this -- how exactly would it be a disaster for Toronto?
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The opponents said a casino would bring all sorts of problems (little Layton even ridiculously claimed "problem gamblers" at casinos total 60%). If it is in Markham, all those problems will still exist, but the City of Toronto will not make a dime in tax revenue, fees etc. And thousands of jobs will be created in Markham.

Is that simple enough for you?
 
FutureBuilder said:
The opponents said a casino would bring all sorts of problems (little Layton even ridiculously claimed "problem gamblers" at casinos total 60%). If it is in Markham, all those problems will still exist, but the City of Toronto will not make a dime in tax revenue, fees etc. And thousands of jobs will be created in Markham.

Is that simple enough for you?
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That's like saying if a company moved to Toronto, it would be a disaster for Durham or Peel or York Region. Where exactly is the disaster?

Try being less simple.
 
GenerationW said:
That's like saying if a company moved to Toronto, it would be a disaster for Durham or Peel or York Region. Where exactly is the disaster?

Try being less simple.
Click to expand...

It was pretty simple. Even for you. If you don't understand it, just read it over and over again. Eventually it will sink in.
 
Source yorkregion.com
Casino a boon to Vaughan: city report

Vaughan Citizen
By Tim Kelly May 23, 2013

A new city report makes a strong case for willing host status for an integrated entertainment and gaming complex for Vaughan.
The report, released in advance of Tuesday’s special committee of the whole meeting at city hall on a casino for Vaughan, says Vaughan will receive $32 million per year in hosting fees, collect $2.4 million to $3.7 million per year in property taxes, create 8,000 to 10,000 permanent jobs, 4,000 indirect jobs, 3,000 construction jobs, provide a capital investment of between $1.2 billion to $1.5 billion and help offset future tax increases.

Prepared by Vaughan executive director Tim Simmonds, in consultation with acting city manager Barb Cribbett, the report is high on the positives of a complex that would include a casino, and low on any negative social impacts it might generate.

It also provides a list of 21 terms and conditions it says a casino complex vendor must meet, including:
• consider locating on provincially owned lands adjacent to the (upcoming) 407 subway station

• that parking be paid and not on surface lots but in structures

• that the maximum size of the gaming floor be 15 per cent of the development and minimums required for hotel/convention centre

• complex built to LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental design) gold certification

• that a casino will only be considered in a specific area of Vaughan

Pros/cons

Mayor Maurizio Bevilacqua said he favoured discussing the pros and cons of having a casino as part of a complex that would include a performing arts centre, five-star hotel, convention centre and other attractions...

And even though councillors will have sole discretion to decide if Vaughan is a willing host for a casino, the mayor said he will listen to public opinion on the issue...

Thornhill/Concord Councillor Sandra Yeung Racco has been a strong opponent of a casino complex for Vaughan since the notion was floated last year.
"“It (a casino) will destroy families"...
She said a casino complex would reflect poorly on the city and would create the wrong image for Vaughan.

“It’s bad because Vaughan has always based its pride on family. We’ve had Canada’s Wonderland, which is a family activity, we have Vaughan Mills, which is a family thing, we have Legoland that we just opened up, which is a family thing, we’ve got McMichael, we’ve got Kortright Centre, all those things are family oriented,†said Ms Yeung Racco, adding a casino complex does not work with the other attractions Vaughan has to offer.
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I'm confident Vaughan council will approve a casino.

If Vaughan is selected by OLG as the casino location, they'll build it on Provincial owned land at the junction of the new subway extension and the now under construction Hwy 7 Transitway. It'll provide easy access to the citizens of Toronto, tourists and the huge Asian community of Markham. This location is minutes from Hwys 400, 407 and 401, close to Canada's Wonderland (9th most visited tourist attraction in Canada).

The area is virtually a blank slate with little existing residential to impact and huge tracts of land which is now in the process of being developed.

Oh...and don't forget who the mayor of Vaughan is...
Maurizio Bevilacqua, PC, (born June 1, 1960) is a Canadian politician. He was a Liberal Member of Parliament from 1988 to 2010 and was one of eleven candidates for the leadership of the Liberal Party of Canada but dropped out of the race on August 14, 2006. He has been described in the media as a "right-of-centre, business friendly Liberal".[1]

Bevilacqua was a Liberal member of the Canadian House of Commons... He is a former secretary of state (Science, Research and Development) and (International Financial Institutions). He is also a former parliamentary secretary to the minister of Labour (Human Resources Development) and to the Minister of Employment and Immigration (Human Resources Development).

He was the longtime chair of the Commons finance committee.
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I expect the Mayor of Vaughan is a man with extensive political and business connections and I would expect there are some favours owed him out there.

If I was placing bets, (although not personally a problem gambler) Vaughan is rapidly moving up my list for top choice.
 
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