Hokkaido to set IR candidate site by the end of the year

The Experts Committee held its first meeting last Monday and said it’ll announce the site chosen for an IR development before 2019.

Japan.- The integrated resorts (IR) Implementation Bill was approved by the Japanese Legislature and the door is now wide open for the casino industry to enter the country. However, there’s still no designated locations for the venues, which is why Hokkaido has a committee working on the subject.

The Experts Committee that was established by Governor Harumi Takahashi held its first meeting last Monday and announced that the candidate site for an IR will be settled by the end of 2018. It is expected that Tomakomai city will be chosen, but other locations, like Rusutsu or Kushiro, could also be favoured.

Despite most Hokkaido Prefectural Assembly members opposing an IR bid, Governor Takahashi favours it and established the Experts Committee as part of a lobbying effort to get the industry to settle in the prefecture.

There’s still another three meetings left in the schedule designed for the committee, and the next one will take place on August 30th. It is yet to be seen whether Hokkaido will get its IR and, if it finally does, which city will host the venue.