Second casino proposal for the Gold Coast raises more and more questions
There are a number of questions that need to be answered before a second casino can be built. David Hutley asks, is our government selling out the Gold Coast?
Opinion
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Is our government selling out the Gold Coast?
There’s a short-term payday on the horizon for our government. But the government’s gain could push our community into long-term pain.
Does the Gold Coast need or want a second casino?
What public land will a second casino be built on? What does the community get in return? How will our traffic network cope with years of construction chaos?
The questions go on and on.
We already have The Star Gold Coast complex. It employs 2400 people, but there are plans to create up to another 10,000 jobs with $2 billion-plus in further development planned for its Broadbeach site.
Those pushing a second casino – and trying to dress it up as a ‘Global Tourism Hub’ – say the Gold Coast needs more tourism infrastructure. But the existing casino licence holder is promising to deliver just that. They’re investing more than $2 billion. More importantly, they’re doing it with NO EXTRA POKER MACHINES and NO NEED FOR PUBLIC LAND.
The existing casino is planning to create a tourism destination that will compete with any in the world. Isn’t that what the Government wants? Or is their real goal the State Revenue they’ll get by selling a new licence?
We also have to ask, why are we going down this path again? The Wave Break Island and Spit casino proposals came to nothing. Worse, $9 million in taxpayer money was paid to compensate ASF when the Spit proposal was quashed. Heads in government should have rolled over that one.
How much will taxpayers lose in funding to schools, hospitals, roads and police when this third attempt for a casino falls over?
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The government might secure, at best, a heartless RSL club on steroids if they give the green light to an operator such as Hard Rock. A recent Macquarie Equities research report showed a second casino worth more than $400 million would struggle to be viable. A second casino would have to target a local customer base, not international visitors, because it would not have the necessary high-end or authentic experience to lure overseas tourists to the Gold Coast.
Where is the government’s own feasibility research on this critical issue? Research that shows not just how a hypothetical second casino would stack up, but also how it would impact the existing pubs, clubs and The Star’s big redevelopment? I would wager that the government has either not done the homework - or it’s been shredded - because it shows what we all know: the coast already has enough gaming.
No other capital city in Australia has more than one big casino. Why? Because they prey on a limited pool of local gamblers. Overseas and interstate visitors don’t come here to play the pokies.
Finally, we can’t ignore the very serious community implications. Clubs Queensland have said another casino will be a competitor and will force the closure of 30 or so local community clubs, creating job losses for their employees and suppliers. Remember it’s those community clubs that provide funding for our lifesavers, our veterans, for local sporting groups and many community projects and initiatives.
The private operator of a second casino would simply pocket money that would otherwise be invested back into our community. It’s a lot to take in, before we even consider the social impact of the additional problem gambling a second casino could trigger.
Previous opinion polls have always shown that no-one wants another casino on the Gold Coast. That’s why I started a parliamentary petition, and I encourage you to go to www.stop2ndcasino.com and say ‘No way’ to a dumb idea.
Let’s get smart about our future, and focus our energy on major infrastructure that the Gold Coast community actually wants.
David Hutley is a Gold Coast resident and Main Beach Association committee member.
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