Casino Plan Has Voter Support; Businesses Not Sold

COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Casino supporters are in the lead, and that lead is large.

That’s the finding of a new poll of 1,074 Ohio voters by Quinnipiac University.

The poll released Tuesday finds 58 percent of voters support Issue 3, which would allow casinos in four Ohio cities: Columbus, Cleveland, Cincinnati and Toledo. Only 37 percent of voters stated an opposition to the casino plan.

But in Columbus’ Arena District, where a casino would be built west of the Huntington Park baseball stadium, surrounding businesses are demonstrating a lack of enthusiasm about the plan.

"I think with this happening it might draw some more people down there. And then it obviously would negatively affect us in overall sales throughout the year," said Joe Sauvie, general manager of Ted’s Montana Grill.

Sauvie’s restaurant sits less than a half-mile away from the proposed casino site on Nationwide Boulevard. He says the casino would promote its own retail and restaurants, keeping customers inside, instead of exploring the Arena District, and he is worried the casino could discount food prices by making up for it with gambling profits.

"If people are going to go over there and go gamble and know they're going to get comped food or comped drinks, then that might hurt us I believe," Sauvie said.

Supporters argue the plan would bring enough new business to the area to boost every business’ bottom line.

“The number of people coming into the District is going to increase so dramatically that you've got a much bigger customer base. So I don't even think there's any reason to believe that they would start to lose any business in the first place," said Bob Tennenbaum, spokesperson for the Ohio Jobs and Growth Committee. "I think the impact on surrounding businesses is probably going to be similar to the impact on surrounding businesses from the construction of Huntington Park."

Nationwide Realty Investments has stated its opposition to the casino plan. Another Arena District tenant, the Columbus Blue Jackets, has not taken a position on Issue 3. Neither has Experience Columbus, the tourism and marketing office promoting central Ohio. CEO and President Paul Astleford said the plan is a “mixed bag,” and voters need to consider both sides of the argument.

"Like it or not, casinos are one of the things that draw and attendance is a big deal to us," Astleford said, referencing the potential for the casino to help attract major conventions to Columbus. But Astleford also cautioned against the impact the casino could have on discretionary spending. "What's that going to do to restaurant sales? What's that going to do to arts and entertainment?"

Franklin County Commissioner John O'Grady said he is worried that the casino could negatively influence the family-friendly environment at Huntington Park, which the county owns.

Support for Issue 3 did not translate into a customer base for the future casinos. The Quinnipiac poll found that 60 percent of Ohio voters were not likely or not likely at all to go to a casino.

The poll also found that Governor Ted Strickland’s plan to install video slot machines at race tracks was supported by 60 percent of Ohio voters, with 34 percent in opposition.