It looks like there won’t be a casino in the near future for Grand Forks residents. A representative from the British Columbia Lottery Corporation (BCLC) was at the June 27 city council meeting to share the corporation’s ruling. “We are not contemplating opening a facility in the Grand Forks region,” Greg Walker, manager of public affairs at the BCLC, said. “We have studied this area quite extensively and recently decided to go ahead with the community gaming centre in Castlegar.” He added that they would continue to watch growth in this area. Walker said that because there are problems associated with gambling, the government expects BCLC to keep a close tab on gaming and the associated risks. “About 4.6 per cent of the adult population is challenged by our games and we’re aware of that,” Walker said.
He explained the process to get the approval to build a casino in a town. After the initial interest and support from the municipality, public meetings must be held. After that a letter is sent to BCLC asking for approval and if given, the municipality then has to go to its neighbouring regions and cities and get their input. “All of that information is things that we must have before we make the final decision,” he said. Coun. Christine Thompson, who was acting mayor at that meeting, said that the presentation was informative. Thompson noted that according to the presentation, it should be the BCLC that approaches the municipality and not the other way around. “As I understand it, the process goes through you (BCLC) first, then you, the BCLC, would approach the city and express your interest,” Thompson said.
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