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Originally Posted by Bubba  Good find, duece! Lot's of good info. I read in that where Boot Hill Gaming is a for-profit wholly owned subsidiary of Boot Hill Museum. Maybe they can put some of those profits back into Boot Hill so they can quit stealing money from the WND money. |
Bubba and duece - I can answer some of this, but please believe me TexKan has wandered way off the path of even reasonable deduction and I need to try and convince her of what is truth.
Boot Hill Gaming (BHG) is a for-profit corp and owned 100% by Boot Hill Museum. BHG was created in 2004 to separate the museum's lobbying activities from it's daily mission and to create a separate identity. Boot Hill Museum (BHM) is a not-for-profit 501(c)3 and it would be correct to categorize BHM as a 'private' company, but there are no shareholders. If you look at the Museum's Articles of Incorporation and ByLaws, you will find that if BHM ever ceases to exist, it's assets revert to the City of Dodge City (which it has come to the brink of in the last couple of years). So, no human-being owns either the Museum or the Gaming company. Period. If we follow that legal premise - then no individual person will benefit from profits made from owning the gaming enterprise - any profits would flow to BHM.
Where will the money come from to build a casino complex? From borrowing the funds, like any other developer. What's the collateral? A destination casino facility which has a significant capitalized value (why do you think everyone wants to be the developer-licensee?) No, back to the beginning, BHG is owned 100% by the Museum. Well then, who's getting rich? Is there private capital or investment by individuals? No individual person - so it must be the community as a whole. I know that sounds 'pollyanna', but sorry to say - it's the truth. If BHG owns the casino complex, the profits will flow back in Museum development downtown revitalization. There's no end to the investment ideas that could be funded. Being on the Museum's board of directors would now be a 'hot place to be', rather that the icy-way it's treated now. If an outside gaming organizaton, or Indian funded group, is the eventual developer, then those net profits will flow out of State.
ps - the minimum investment for Ford County is $50 Million (not $225 million, which is the minimum for the other three locations). The application fee for a Dodge casino is $5.5 Million (the others are $25 Milllion). This sized down because the casino will be smaller too.
I thought the State was the owner? The State isn't putting up any money - but will probably 'own' (as in deeded) the gaming floor. I think Dodge City's casino will be about 40,000 sq ft. of gaming floor. I thought the State had to be the operator? The State will contract with an operator (such as Butler National Corp) through a competitive application process.
What are the percentages that will be paid of gaming revenues? The new law is clear - 22% to the State, 2% to the Problem Gaming Fund, 1 1/2% to the City and 1 1/2% to the County. If it's located in the County, the full 3% goes to the County. Do we have to vote? Yes - probably June 26th. Do we vote on who the developer or operator will be? No, that decision resides with Lottery and the Gaming commission.
Why does BHG keep pushing a downtown location - or N and NW of Wright Park area? Because BHG's and the Museum's mission is to redevelop downtown - support existing entertainment facilities - and motels and restaurants along our Wyatt Earp corridor. Simple - no smoke or mirrors - that's all there is to it. If we locate the facility on the outskirts of town, BHG has more flexibility of design and growth won't have the same impact on downtown. Everything is a trade-off and at some point with any business you have to make weighted decisions. This is one of those. And, remember, it's really not a public decision, it's a private risk capital based decision.
Hope that helps - and TexKan please reconsider some of what you said, in light of what I've tried to explain.