The Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation is currently working on a contract agreement that would put a new casino operator in charge of two of the venues located around the Niagara Falls area. Now the city of Niagra Falls is requesting that they get some input on the decision so that their local choice gives a little bit of influence in the contract. The city council has already approved a plan that they would like to present to the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation, a plan that received unanimous approval.
The two casinos that are located in the historical area of Niagara Falls is the Casino Niagara and the Niagara Fallsview Casino Resort. The Casino Niagara was first built in 1996, but the Niagara Fallsview came almost a decade later in 2004 which was also much larger and more popular. Both of these casinos are owned and operated through the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation, who act as the regulator for gambling throughout the province. The management for these casinos has been the Falls Management Group. However, the current deal is nearing its end and is set to expire in June of 2019, which raises the question of whether or not a new management will be decided upon or if the current management will stay for an extended contract. It’s most likely that new management will be put in to fulfill the “Niagara Gaming Bundle” plan that the OLGC is proposing.
Right now the organization is seeking potential candidates that can be pre-approved. The management companies that get approved will then be able to put forth their own proposals for the job, and the group will decide which proposal it likes best and enter in a new contract. Participants that are interested only have until December 15th, and then the request for proposal process will begin where the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation will begin to take in the proposals. This will eventually lead to a pick on the new service provider.
This doesn’t bode so well for Niagara Falls city management, who want their input to be considered so that they can be apart of the process. The purpose would be to include the goals of the city and come to a solution for new management based around that. For this reason, they want the proposal process to be delayed so that competitors can know what the city is looking for before submitting their plans. Niagara Falls would like to be a key part of the selection process, and are the best qualified for decided how these establishments should be ran.
This will be a big decision that may determine how much money gets paid to the city in taxes, how much money is delegated towards addiction prevention and rehab programs, and what types of decisions will be made in terms of profitability of the casinos. The OLGC has yet to respond on whether or not they will allow the requested Niagara Falls city council participation.