Subscriber Benefit
As a subscriber you can listen to articles at work, in the car, or while you work out. Subscribe NowFort Wayne Mayor Tom Henry wants voters to decide
whether the Indiana’s second largest city should seek a state casino gambling
license.
The Democratic first-term mayor said a citywide referendum should be held as
early as this fall to decide whether the city should pursue a license.
Henry also said the ongoing debate over whether legalized gambling should be
expanded in Fort Wayne should continue through a referendum campaign.
“The decision about gaming is not mine alone,” Henry said.
“This will give everybody a chance to speak out and be heard,” said City
Councilman Tom Smith said at a news conference with the mayor yesterday.
Henry said he was unsure whether he would take a stance for or against a
casino license before a referendum was conducted.
The city last month announced it was using two consultants to help gauge the
effects of gaming in Fort Wayne. The city hired Third House Advocacy Group LLC
of Indianapolis for $32,000 to study the market potential for gambling and an
evaluation of its economic effect.
The Community Research Institute at Indiana University-Purdue University Fort
Wayne, under an existing $25,000 contract, will coordinate a separate assessment
that looks at a casino’s social and community effects.
Henry said the studies should be released soon. The city then will conduct a
series of public forums on the issue.
Any referendum must be approved by the Indiana General Assembly. Henry said
he will begin lobbying state legislators to make it happen this year.
State Sen. David Long (R-Fort Wayne) said while he personally doesn’t like
the idea of a casino in Fort Wayne, he believes a referendum is appropriate for
such an emotional issue.
Several gambling-related bills have passed the Indiana House, which means
senators could easily attach referendum language to that legislation.
Rep. Phil GiaQuinta (R-Fort Wayne) said a referendum makes sense because
communities have historically had to approve such a measure before the
legislature would consider allowing an expansion of gambling there.
A bill to move slot machines to Fort Wayne died in GiaQuinta’s committee this
year, partly because Henry and other local officials didn’t openly support the
idea. Another gambling bill exists, however, that could be amended to allow for
a referendum this fall, GiaQuinta said.
Henry said he has not examined how the referendum should be financed.
Long said the referendum should be financed by the people interested in
putting a casino in Fort Wayne.
“I don’t think any referendum like this should be paid for by the taxpayers,”
he said.
Please enable JavaScript to view this content.