There are many in York Region who might tell you that a facility on highway 27 has pretty good acess to them too.
As I've said, I don't care where (or even if) a casino is placed.....but couldn't all of your closing paragraph describe Peel?
Yes most of my closing paragraph can describe Peel. By no means am I trying to get into a debate about which region is better than the other.
(However, York Region does have a higher income per household than Peel, as well as a higher home ownership percentage rate.)
What I am trying to say though is that in my opinon, Downtown Markham will be getting the new casino.
Everyone in Markham has heard about the plans for Downtown Markham/Markham Centre. However I find that many people outside of Markham, and especially outside of York Region, have not heard of it at all.
Let me give you a little summary......
For general info about Downtown Markham, please read the following wikipediea link:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Downtown_Markham,_Ontario
The term "Downtown" Markham, is a term used by the developer to describe the area. However, to think of it another way, what Markham is trying to create is the main area for economic development in the Town. An area that consists of a high concentration of residential, retail, and office buildings. An area full of world-class restaurants, retail shops, and entertainment.
Generally speaking, the Town of Markham has always been divided into three main villages: Markham Village, Unionville, and Thornhill. Each of these villages has their own main streets and central locations: Main Street Markham, Main Street Unionville, and Thornhill has Yonge Street. However, Markham as a whole does not have its own main area for all the people throughout the entire town to share. It does not have a central area for economic development. Many of the municipalities across the GTA have a “downtown” area of their own. Back in the 70’s, North York decided that it would build a “downtown” area for itself full of residential, retail, and office buildings. 30 years later we have North York Centre, an economically thriving area. Other Municipalities, such as Mississauga, Vaughan, and Scarborough, have their "downtowns" (central areas of economic development) around huge malls: Square One, Vaughan Mills, and Scarborough Town Centre. The problem with those areas is that those malls have huge parking lots surrounding them, so you don’t get the same downtown feel.
Downtown Markham/Markham Centre is the Town of Markham's attempt to create it's own central area for economic development. It has been in the planning since the mid 90's. The main builder, financer, and owner of the land, The Remington Group, have a dream to make Downtown Markham a world-class area. They could have just taken the land and built a few large residential subdivision and made lots and lots of money. However, they decided that they were going to do something different, something that would be special. The plans that Remington Group has for the area are very ambitious and back in the 90's they were called crazy. However, many great visionaries throughout history have faced ridicule from doubters claiming that large projects could not be achieved. Remington Group is on a path to prove them wrong and by 2020 Downtown Markham will be the envy of the Province.
The casino is coming to Downtown Markham my friends.....remember that you heard it here first!
Just a reminder...if you have 17 minutes to spare, watch this Steve Paikin interview with the CEO of OLG.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GVNWPToM41U
