 Seven aldermen were present for the hearing, with Stacy Bacon, Jeff Hoinacki and Buzz Busby being absent.
At the beginning of the meeting, Mayor Keith Snyder offered an
overview of the Video Gaming Act passed as a part of the capital
plan for the state of Illinois in 2009.
He explained that if the city chooses to ban the new gaming
machines in Lincoln, an ordinance will have to be passed to that
effect. He also told the audience of 50 concerned citizens that the
ordinance has already been drafted, but to date there is no vote on
the agenda to make it a reality.
Snyder said he would call on speakers in the order he received
their speaker request forms and would ask that each one talk no more
than five minutes.
The first person to the podium was Larry Hartley from Normal,
representing Hartley Amusements. With only five minutes, Hartley
rapidly ran through a series of dollar figures intended to show the
positive effect video gaming would have statewide as well as
locally. He said revenues to the state from video gaming would
support approximately 30-40 percent of the capital projects in
Illinois.
He also noted that in the capital projects list are some dollars
slated for Lincoln and Logan County.
Hartley drew from language of a recent action in the Appellate
Court. The move against the Video Gaming Act was said to be
"unconstitutional."
He ended by saying the real "Christmas tree" effect of video
gaming would be increased jobs, increased spending and a better
economy.
Mike Thornton of Lincoln spoke quickly and simply said: "If
people want to gamble, they're going to gamble, so I say just leave
it alone.
Gerald Carter of Lincoln was the third person to speak and spoke
out against gambling. He told the council he has spent the last 27
years working with inmates at the Logan Correctional Center. He said
he has learned that many of the problems that put the inmates in
prison begin with an addiction.
He also noted that while he had only been in the Lincoln area for
the last 50 years, his wife was a native and had recounted to him
the days of Coonhound Johnny and illegal games back in the 1940s and
'50s. Gaming at that time became so corrupt that eventually the
federal government came into Logan County seeking out the machines
and destroying them.
"I don't think we should go back to those old days," Carter
concluded.
Dale Ridgeway of Lincoln spoke about his personal experiences,
saying that seven years ago he learned exactly what it was like to
start playing a simple game and end up losing $60,000.
He spoke of hiding his addiction, lying to his family, and
borrowing money from his mother and lying about what it was for. He
said the values he was taught as a child were tossed aside for his
habit, and his personal character was destroyed by his addiction.
Anita Bedell of the Illinois Church Action on Alcohol & Addiction
Problems said the law was not popular, and if it had to pass on its
own without the capital plan, it would not. She noted 80 communities
have said no to the new gaming program, including Chicago and Cook
County.
Larry Crawford and Mike Robbins of Open Arms Christian Fellowship
Church and Dustin Fulton of the Jefferson Street Christian Church
spoke in favor of banning the new machines, saying the cost to
children was too high.
Crawford said that in Lincoln there is a great need among
families and legalized gambling will only serve to make things
worse, while Fulton noted that these games would not draw
out-of-towners -- all the problems would be local. He said yes, he
knows the city and county need revenues, but he wondered if it would
be worth what it will cost families.
Amy Wubben said she has worked with children who are taken away
from their families, many due to addiction problems associated with
lottery tickets. She noted that in working with hundreds of
families, the vast majority of them were on welfare and yet bought
lottery tickets, hoping to win big. In the end, many of the children
were never allowed to return to their parents.
Others who had asked to be recognized included Dick Anderson of
the Lincoln American Legion Post 263, Irv Gesner of the Glass House
Tavern and Shawn Taylor of Logan Lanes.
Taylor spoke about the hits to his business over the last few
years. The state smoking ban decreased business by 15 percent,
liquor taxes have increased, corporate taxes are higher, and his
cable bill has increased significantly, as has minimum wage.
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He noted statistics that said 82 percent of his patrons will
gamble, but 95 percent of those will do so without developing any
problems.
For Taylor, the 35 percent he will make from video gaming could
help him keep his doors open.
"We're bleeding here, and this is a chance to stop the bleeding,"
he told the council.
Anderson and Gesner spoke of using revenues from the gaming
machines to support local causes and how that support may be
jeopardized.
Julie Zonoza, a Lincoln resident, spoke out against gambling. She
commented she was confused as to why Hartley from Normal was at a
meeting in Lincoln until she realized he was the one who would make
the money from the machines, and he and the business owners would
reap 70 percent of the revenues, while the city of Lincoln would get
only 5 percent.
Lynn Laughlin said that in gambling there is no one who will step
up and stop someone who has gone too far. He noted that in the case
of alcohol, there is always someone who draws the line and says, "No
more. You've had enough." But there will be no one to tell gamers
they have gone too far, spent too much money and need to stop.
Elaine Woolard was the last registered speaker. She recounted
growing up in a home where her parents battled over the money her
father lost in his gambling habit and how difficult it was being a
child in that situation.
As the meeting began to draw to an end, Snyder asked if there was
anyone else who would like to speak to the council.
Ed Carter had come in right as the meeting began and said he
really had not intended to speak but felt compelled to do so.
He said those who were gathered in the room were there because
they care about the community they live in and want what is best.
Carter admitted there is obviously a lot of economic pressure
right now for individuals as well as local businessmen. And there
are many challenges for the community.
"One way we can help each other is to support local businesses.
If I need to take my family to the bowling alley, I can do that," he
said.
He also noted Cook County has been reported to have vetoed the
gaming rule. He asked the council: If Chicago opted out, do you
really think they are not going to get capital funds?
He surmised the dollars earned here in Lincoln would be shared
with Chicago, and Chicago knows they will not lose out in funding by
vetoing the machines.
"If Chicago thinks this is a bad idea, maybe we should wise up
and quit sending out money to them," he concluded.
Finally Joe Papesch of Old Joe's said he'd like to say just a few
words. He addressed Laughlin's comment about stopping people from
going too far, saying that in his bar, if they see people who are
spending too much, they do stop them. He added he'd never seen any
of his customers spending their kids' school money.
The night ended in a burst of laughter as Papesch concluded: "If
you go to a fast-food place to get a hamburger, you should have to
step on a scale. If you weigh so much, there should be an obesity
law against you."
At the end of the hearing Snyder said he wanted to commend each
side for offering their points of view thoughtfully.
The council will enter into further discussion on this issue in
future workshop meetings.
There is still plenty of time to make an official decision on
video gaming, though it has been expressed by Alderman Tom O'Donohue
at past meetings that out of consideration for local businesses, the
decision should be made soon.
[By NILA SMITH]
Article posted Tuesday
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