Column: Casino won't help small town in Ohio

Wednesday, August 27, 2008

"Let's say you just lost your job. Naturally, the first thing you should do is bet everything you have at the local casino.

If that sounds recklessly stupid, it's just what Ohio has in mind for Wilmington.

The town of 12,000 will lose 10,000 jobs when DHL shuts down its Wilmington air-freight hub. So the rest of Ohio shakes its head and shrugs, "Oh well, at least they're getting a new casino."

People in Wilmington, reeling from the DHL shock waves, resent it. "If you get that casino, won't that help you?'" Mayor David Raizk says, paraphrasing the comments. "Not really."

Casino jobs could take years, while the DHL damage is now. "It diminishes the message of what's going on here."

Most in Ohio haven't read the fine print of the MyOhioNow casino plan by Lakes Entertainment of Minnesota that is heading for the Nov. 4 ballot. But Wilmington is inspecting every comma."

Get the Story:
Peter Bronson: They're getting a new casino, want it or not (The Cincinnati Enquirer 8/27)