Mississippi rejects two proposed sites
State regulators rejected two proposed casino sites for the Mississippi Gulf Coast.
US.- Two proposed casino sites were rejected by state regulators yesterday. The three members of the Mississippi Gaming Commission discussed the proposal for less than two hours before communicating the decision to reject the sites.
According to the Sun Herald, the commissioners didn’t explain why they unanimously rejected the proposal, even if the executive director of the local commission Allen Godfrey had previously recommended the sites to be dismissed. Jacobs Entertainment Diamondhead and RW Development presented the proposals in February for the second time: back in 2008 the project was rejected because they didn’t have control on the lands to the water’s edge, but Michael Cavanaugh, an attorney from RW Development, believed that the high water line and the shoreline are not the same.
After the ruling, the attorney said that he’s set to meet with Jacobs Entertainment to see if they would appeal. RW Development announced that an appealing is also coming. “We are concerned that the meeting was adjourned without any explanation of the decision and that the scheduled public comment on the agenda was canceled without notice,” they said.
Billy Hewes, Gulfport’s Mayor, publicly criticised the two sites and said that the greater impact would ve the effect of completely changing the character of the south Mississippi community. “it would effectively open the floodgates to an indiscriminate proliferation of gaming sites to areas never contemplated or desired. Furthermore, this cannot be about limitations on competitive opportunities, as a multitude of legal gaming sites are presently in existence and available for development,” he added.
Attorney and deputy director of the Mississippi Gaming & Hospitality Association Michael Bruffey, said that they’re pleased to see the commission honoring the intent of the Legislature. “It is likely there will be a time when we will need our legislature to support our industry in the future, and we think it is essential that our legislators know that we will abide by and defend their expressed intent when they come to our aid,” he concluded.
