King Arthur's gamble

In the hysterical movie "Monty Python and the Holy Grail," King Arthur rides through the land gathering knights to join him at Camelot. When the Knights arrive, they decide that they don't like Camelot and end up becoming involved in a search for the Holy Grail.

The effort to bring a casino to downtown Buffalo represents our area politicians' misguided search for the Holy Grail to turn Buffalo around.

I am not morally opposed to casino gambling. If you enjoy spending time at a casino, that is your prerogative as a free-thinking adult. The New York State Constitution prohibits gambling. Though it has been amended to allow for betting on horses and on the state-sponsored lottery, gambling remained prohibited to address the concerns government reformers had regarding bags of money being paid to elected officials in kickbacks and bribes.

Ironically, when the issue was being debated in the State Legislature, millions of dollars in campaign contributions were delivered to legislators by Donald Trump (who did not want gambling legalized to compete with his New Jersey casino) and millions were contributed by Indian tribes not wanting gambling legalized, as they preferred a backdoor method of bringing casinos to New York. While the Constitution prohibits gambling, that Constitution does not apply to a sovereign Indian nation. An end run was done around the State Constitution and around the public's right to vote as to whether the public wanted casinos.

As with any issue, a casino has positive aspects and negative aspects. On the positive side, a casino will produce jobs and provide an entertainment destination for people to visit. The negative aspect is that the land provided to the Seneca's for a casino is considered sovereign land, which is not taxable and not subject to any control by the state or city. Under the Casino Gambling Compact, a portion of the revenue earned by the Seneca's on slot machines is shared with the State of New York and the City of Buffalo. New York State receives approximately 18 percent and the City of Buffalo will receive approximately six percent.

I believe that the city of Buffalo can once again become a vibrant successful city. The number one citizen complaint to the Mayor's complaint line are calls regarding housing violations. In a city that once housed over 500,000 (present population 290,000) we have thousands of neglected and abandoned properties that affect the quality of life for our residents and drain city resources with repeated calls for police, fire, inspections etc. We must stop further flight out of the city by addressing basic quality of life issues, starting with the removal of thousands of properties and creating new opportunities for redevelopment.

Study after study reveals that nationwide small businesses produce more jobs than big national companies. Instead of addressing basic problems such as abandoned buildings and assisting small businesses, our political leaders search for the Holy Grail of a casino or a Bass Pro, which garners headlines and ribbon cuttings, but not much more.

A casino in Buffalo under the terms of the Compact is a bad deal for Buffalo. What has occurred in Niagara Falls provides a lesson for Buffalo. In Niagara Falls, the Seneca's were provided 52 acres of land, which is not only being utilized as a casino but also as a restaurant and hotel to compete with other local businesses that have to pay taxes. The state is now seizing 26 acres from private property owners, removing $1.5 million of taxable land from the city's tax base. The city share of casino funds for Niagara Falls must go through a bureaucratic process of red tape, consultants and studies controlled by Albany.

When all is said and done, state legislators have stuffed their pockets with campaign contributions, the Seneca's will make a ton of money which won't reach many Indians who live in the worst poverty, the state will receive millions of dollars and the city of Buffalo will lose taxable land to a sovereign nation, and have to jump through tremendous hoops with the state to make use of casino funds.

The worst part of all is that our many abandoned buildings will continue to drag our city down, our small businesses will continue to be neglected, while our politicians smile at press conferences and ribbon cuttings touting the Holy Grail of casinos.

Joe Golombek is a member of the City of Buffalo's Common Council representing the North District.