Kingston alderman shuffle their casino stance

By Paul Kirby , Freeman staff Daily Freeman June 23, 2005

KINGSTON - A city resolution that would oppose casino gambling probably will be reworded to call for an outright ban of casinos in Kingston and support for other municipalities that don't want gaming halls in their boundaries.
The resolution would replace one recommended by Common Council Majority Leader Bill Reynolds - originally scheduled for a vote on Wednesday - that simply would have opposed casinos anywhere in Ulster County.
The rewording was suggested by Alderman Chris Burns, R-Ward 1, during Wednesday night's meeting of the council's Laws and Rules Committee.
Reynolds, D-Ward 7, appeared to support Burns' rewording, which, if adopted, would leave open the question of whether the Common Council would support a casino proposed in a community that welcomes gambling.
The Laws and Rules Committee took no action on casinos on Wednesday but is expected to revisit the issue on July 5.
Burns, even though he suggested the new wording, said he's likely to vote against the resolution. He agrees a casino would be in appropriate for Kingston but also said the council should not impose its will on other communities.
"I don't think that it is in our best interest to speak for other communities," said Burns, the only Republican on the nine-member council.
Several communities in Ulster County have approved anti-casino resolutions in recent weeks. Among them is Saugerties, where the Seneca-Cayuga Tribe of Oklahoma has proposed building a casino, hotel, entertainment center and golf course on the Winston Farm.
Reynolds' original resolution called for "opposition to a legalized casino gaming facility" in Ulster County, specifically the Kingston-Saugerties area.
Reynolds' resolution stated that, according to research by the University of Illinois, too much money has to be spent solving the problems created by casinos.
"For every dollar taken in from gaming revenue, there is an outlay of $3 for infrastructure costs, relatively high regulatory expenses and criminal justice system and social welfare expenses," the Reynolds resolution stated. "Communities elsewhere have become host to so-called Native American facilities (and) have experienced an undue burden on their infrastructure, programs and public services."
Two of Kingston's nine aldermen - Leonard Walker, D-Ward 3, and John Martino, D-Ward 6 - have said they would not object to a casino being built in Kingston in an appropriate location could be found.

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