Casino developers show their hand

By William J. Kemble , Correspondent Daily Freeman June 18, 2005

THE CASINO resort that the Seneca-Cayuga Tribe of Oklahoma wants to build on the Winston Farm in Saugerties would create thousands of jobs, generate hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue, have only minimal impact on the land, focus more on entertainment than gambling and pay tribute to the Woodstock music festivals of 1969 and 1994, according to promotional material presented this week to Ulster County economic leaders.
The material aims to "set the record straight" and clear up a "great deal of rumor and innuendo swirling around" the proposal, it states.
PRESENTED to leaders of the Ulster County Development Corp. on Thursday, but withheld from the county Legislature's Casino Impact Committee, the promotional material states the development at state Routes 32 and 212 would be known as the Saugerties Entertainment Resort and comprise more than 1.6 million square feet of buildings. The tribe hopes to have the complex up and running in 2008.
Included would be a 601,900-square-foot hotel, 512,000 square feet of retail space, a 160,000-square-foot gaming area, 118,200 square feet devoted to food and beverage service, 96,000 square feet for entertainment and meetings, 90,700 square feet of visitor circulation areas and a 62,400-square-foot "back of house" area. There also would be two championship golf courses, a luxury spa, miles of scenic hiking trails and 6,000 parking spaces.
But less than 5 percent of the 840-acre farm would be occupied by buildings, the material states. Primary buildings would occupy 18.1 acres, a shopping mall would occupy 11.6 acres and a parking garage would take up 5.8. Another 33.7 acres would be turned into a man-made lake.
THE PROMOTIONAL material touts entertainment, rather than gambling, as the centerpiece of the project.
"As we conceive it today, the heart of the resort will consist of a 2,000-seat, state-of-the-art theater and museum and cultural center that will commemorate the '69 and '94 Woodstock festivals," the material states.
"Our goal with the Saugerties Entertainment Resort is simple: to capture the culture and character of Saugerties - indeed, of the Catskills - in all its legendary beauty," the material states.
The Winston Farm, which sits across Route 32 from Thruway Exit 20, was the site of the Woodstock '94 music festival, a three-day concert in August 1994 that attracted 350,000 people.
The promotional material states the casino resort would provide 3,052 permanent jobs, with an annual payroll of $90 million, and draw 19,309 visitors per day.
The complex each day would serve 14,000 meals and use 325,000 gallons of water, the material states.
A REPRESENTATIVE of Wilmorite Inc., a Rochester-based developer of shopping malls that would construct the casino resort for the tribe, said on Thursday that the Seneca-Cayugas have offered local governments $600 million in return for permission to build the complex.
The payment, referred to by the tribe as an "economic guarantee," would come in the form of $30 million per year for 20 years. Per year, the county would receive $15 million, the town of Saugerties would get $12.2 million, and the village of Saugerties would get $2.8 million. Over 20 years, that would translate into $300 million for the county, $244 million for the town and $56 million for the village.
Village Mayor Robert Yerrick said on Thursday that no amount of money would compel him to reverse his opposition to the casino. Town Supervisor Greg Helsmoortel, who also opposes the casino, said only that no financial offer was made last time the tribe met with Saugerties leaders. Helsmoortel also expressed anger that Saugerties leaders were left out of the loop on Thursday.
The material given to the Ulster County Development Corp. also states that the tribe would "bear the burden of any impact to local municipal services (for) fire, police, emergency" and would "pay the cost of public work improvements."
And "in benefiting the business of the community, the Saugerties Entertainment Resort will comply with all the laws and ordinances that govern the community's businesses," the material states.
Seneca-Cayuga Chief LeRoy Howard did not return three calls seeking comment on Friday.
THE PROMOTIONAL material states that building the casino resort would cost $343 million and that gaming revue would be about $554 million during the first year and nearly $625 million by the fifth year. Food and beverage sales would bring in another $52.9 million per year by the second year.
The Seneca-Cayugas expect 7.2 million patrons and a profit of just under $40 million during the second year of operation, according to the material. The tribe hopes patronage would increase to 7.9 million by the fifth year.
ULSTER COUNTY Legislature Chairman Richard Gerentine said on Friday that he wasn't told ahead of time that the material would be given to the Ulster County Development Corp. on Thursday.
"I was not aware of it until somebody came back from the meeting," said Gerentine, R-Marlboro.
Gerentine also stood by the county Legislature's position that the county will not support any casino proposal that's opposed by the host community. Both the Town Board and Village Board in Saugerties have voted against hosting the Seneca-Cayuga casino.
"Right at this point, it is evident and clear that the local municipality does not want a casino up there, and we're going to honor those wishes," Gerentine said.
GERENTINE also noted that Gov. George Pataki, who at one time favored the development of five casinos in the Catskills, recently said only one gaming hall will be allowed in the region and that it will be built in Sullivan County under the terms of a land claim agreement with the Akwesasne Mohawk Tribe.
"The proposal in Albany right now is to have one casino ... and that's going to be (at) Kutshers (in the Sullivan County community of Monticello)," Gerentine said. "With those two things in place, I do not see this (Winston Farm casino) being a reality at this time."
NAOMI Rothberg, a spokeswoman for the group No Saugerties Casino, said local opponents of the Seneca-Cayuga plan hope county lawmakers keep their promise about keeping casinos out of communities that don't want them.
"We expect the Ulster County Legislature and all the individual legislators to be as good as their word," Rothberg said.
Rothberg also said No Saugerties Casino is working to demonstrate that a casino at the Winston Farm would cause environmental damage.
"It has been established that the Winston Farm sits on a huge, very important aquifer ... and the soils above the aquifer are fragile," she said. "I don't know how much money would cover our having to import water if they destroy our aquifer."
ROBERT Johnstreet, another member of No Saugerties Casino, said the money being offered by the tribe would not make up for the damage the casino resort would cause.
"Money can help greatly to enhance our quality of life, but no amount can ever repurchase it once that quality has been corrupted," he said. "The $20 million a year being offered is an enticement, I would even say a bribe, to have us forfeit our graceful and bucolic way of life. Once destroyed, it cannot be recouped. Saugerties and Ulster County will be permanently scarred."
CHESTER Straub, executive director of the Ulster County Development Corp., said the agency's board has not taken a position on the casino proposal.
"It's appropriate in our role as a business development organization to gather information about potential projects, and that's what this meeting was intended to do," he said of Thursday's session.
"I think that any proposal ... should be judged upon the merits of the project, and I think the information that the development group shared with UCDC is the type of information that needs to be considered," he said.

©Daily Freeman 2005

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