By John MoorhouseTuesday, August 29, 2006, http://www.pentictonherald.ca/article_1903.php
Forty million dollars in casino revenue won't lessen the need for next month's referendum on the $56.2-million South Okanagan Event Centre project, says a city official.Jack Kler, the city's director of corporate services, said Monday the city still needs to borrow $39.2 million to pay for the project which will be put to city voters Sept. 16. "We don't have $40 million sitting in a bank account. That money is going to be spread over 13 years, he explained."We're building the building now. We're paying the contractors now, so we have to borrow the money.The total amount to be borrowed includes $29 million for the event centre itself, $7 million for site infrastructure, plus $3.2 million for relocating three of the four Queen's Park sports fields to other locations in the city.The casino revenues will be used to pay back the loans on an annual basis. The funding amounts to roughly $3 million a year and represents one-third of the net profits from the Lake City Casino in Penticton. Most of it is designated as Development Assistance Compensation (DAC) funds which is earmarked to help further develop the "destination aspect of the casino. Penticton was one of four destination casinos approved by the province seven years ago. There are 13 years remaining on the original 20-year DAC funding agreement.Although no more direct provincial government funding has been added to the event centre since last year's announcement of a $9.7-million grant, Kler noted Victoria played a key role in working out the casino revenue agreement and is a full partner in the pact. The deal is to be signed by the City of Penticton, Lake City Casinos, the B.C. Lottery Corp. and the provincial government.Kler said Lake City has agreed not to apply for any portion of the DAC funding during the next 13 years. Previously, the funding has been used to help pay for such projects as the parkade and Hooded Merganser restaurant at the Penticton Lakeside Resort.One unanswered question is how the casino funding announcement, made by local MLAs Bill Barisoff and Rick Thorpe at a special on-site ceremony last Friday, will impact voter turnout at the upcoming referendum.If enough Yes supporters don't bother to show up at the polls, the referendum could be defeated. If that occurs and the casino revenue agreement falls through, the city could lose $30.5 million in DAC funding. However, it would retain $9.5 million through its share of casino revenues which have been included in the overall $40 million allocation.A group calling itself the Coalition for an Affordable Public Events Centre has been urging a No vote in a second referendum question on proposed private sector management of the facility. However, it has not taken such a stance in opposition to the borrowing bylaw for the event centre.The coalition was scheduled to meet Monday night, at which time a designated spokesperson was expected to be chosen. Even though the coalition has its own website at www.nop3soec.ca no one has yet responded to news media inquiries on its position.
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