MGM Resorts launches new website promoting Toronto casino development

TORONTO – MGM Resorts International has stepped up its public-relations campaign in the fight for a casino in Toronto, launching a new website to convince Torontonians of the supposed benefits of a casino development.

The website, MGM Toronto, shows the gates of Exhibition Place underneath a detailed description of the MGM’s “vision” for an “integrated resort destination.”

The site says the resort will “deliver tremendous economic, employment and tourism benefits,” as well as a permanent Cirque De Soleil attraction and a restaurant from Toronto chef Mark McEwan.

Space on the website is dedicated to detailing the purported benefits of a casino in Toronto including increased tourism, jobs, and government revenue.

Some of the claims include:

•The city of Toronto receiving “property taxes, host community fees, and upfront payment for land or annual lease income if an Integrated Resort is built on city-owned land.”
•Up to 9,000 full-time permanent jobs with annual incomes of roughly $60,000 (including benefits and tips).
•”Integrated Resorts create spillover investment and tourism revenue for existing attractions by increasing the number of visitors to the area of the resort.”

Despite the purported benefits of a casino, former mayors, activist groups and Toronto’s Medical Officer of Health have all suggested a casino may not be the best idea for the economy or the health of Torontonians.

Former mayors David Crombie, John Sewell and Art Eggleton penned a letter to Mayor Rob Ford urging him not to push for a casino development.

“We say enough is enough. Governments shouldn’t be expanding gambling opportunities as a means of balancing their budgets,” the letter reads. “A commercial casino operation is not in Toronto’s best interest.”

Dr. David McKeown, Toronto’s Medical Officer of Health, wrote a report suggesting a casino “is likely to have greater adverse health-related impacts than beneficial impacts.”

McKeown’s report also questioned the claim of increased employment by pointing to the employment rate of Niagara Falls which did not change significantly after a casino was built.