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Valley pastors, political leaders take collective stand against state Issue 3
YOUNGSTOWN — Pastors from the Mahoning Valley and the chairmen of the Mahoning County Democratic and Republican parties are calling on voters not to support an issue on Tuesday’s ballot to amend the state constitution to legalize casino gambling in four cities.
The issue “is a bad deal for the Valley and for the good people of this great state,” said Senior Pastor Jonathan Moore of Highway Tabernacle Church in Austintown. He spoke at a press conference called Thursday at the Youngstown Club to voice opposition to Issue 3.
If approved, the proposal would change the Ohio Constitution to permit only four Las Vegas-style gambling casinos to be built — one each in Cleveland, Columbus, Cincinnati and Toledo.
“We feel strongly that state Issue 3 is of such magnitude and potentially so damaging to our area that it requires nothing less than a joint effort that reaches across party, cultural and religious lines for the welfare of our Valley and the future of the state of Ohio,” Moore said.
Mahoning County Democratic Party Chairman David Betras, who opposes this gambling initiative, said he’s “begging residents” not to vote for this issue.
“This is our political moment to take a stand,” he said.
Betras objects to the Valley’s being excluded from having a casino and that the four cities that would get a casino would receive considerably more money than this area in gambling-tax revenue.
Mahoning Republican Chairman Clarence Smith said, “The Lord has told us today to stand here to say no to this” issue. He later said, “God has sent these people to tell you this is bad.”
Smith said nearby casinos are having financial struggles, and legalizing gambling in Ohio won’t help the state’s economy.
The county Republican and Democratic parties have voted to oppose the state issue.
Supporters of the gambling initiative say the casinos would provide $27 million in tax revenue a year, when the casinos are fully operating. Opponents say those numbers are inflated.
Contacted by The Vindicator on Thursday, Bob Tenenbaum, spokesman for the Ohio Jobs & Growth Plan, the organization supporting the casino issue, said, “We think it’s a great deal for the state of Ohio, and despite no casino in the Valley, it’s a great deal for the Valley.”
The casinos would create 34,000 jobs, he said.
Bishop C.M. Jenkins of the Grace Evangelistic Temple in Youngstown said he understands that people are in desperate need of jobs, but this is the wrong approach.
A number of pastors at Thursday’s event said they oppose gambling for moral reasons.
But Moore added that the state is getting shortchanged by the owners of the would-be casinos, who will pay $50 million one-time licensing fees to Ohio.
Moore declined to comment when repeatedly asked if he would support the gambling initiative if the licensing fees were increased to $250 million or $500 million.
But Jenkins was clear.
“It’s still a bad idea,” he said.
skolnick@vindy.com
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Comments
Mr. Smith
Please explain how the following WILL NOT benefit the state of Ohio:
- New construction jobs to build new casinos.
- New jobs to operate new casinos.
- $200 million in gaming license revenue.
- Taxes on profits from retaining $1 billion of
Ohioians gambling dollars in state.
- Taxes on profits from attracting out-of-state
gambling dollars.
This money is currently being removed from the state, why not spend it here?
Are these the same pastors and political leaders who have done so much to improve the quality of life here in the valley? Perhaps the real problem is that people have been listening to them for too long..........
This would be much better for the state and economy if:
- there was a percentage "Ohio resident jobs" requirement
- there was an annual license fee rather than a one-time fee.
- if it was not written into the constitution in such detail.
I suspect this bill was designed or written by the companies that will profit from the endeavor, and that Ohio is ultimately not going to get nearly as much out of it as they could.
I would like to know the pastors' proposals for mass job creation and increasing tax revenue...perhaps they'd be open to having their organizations taxed since they have such a strong stance on such matters. Or maybe since the one guy "understands that people are in desperate need of jobs" he'll stop passing the hat for a while or take a similar stand against church-sponsored bingo (aka gambling). I don't support THEIR positions for moral reasons.
Jeff has plenty of money that he wants to deposit in the casinos . :)
I'd rather take my cash to a casino; at least they don't lie about the fact that they run a money racket.
Funny, Mr. Smith, but some friends and I were out at Perkins in Boardman a few nights ago and The Lord stopped by to join us for a cup of coffee.
He told us he doesn't see that casinos in other parts of Ohio will hurt us at all and just might benefit us to some extent.
God stopped by to tell us that this is a good thing.
I'll listen to the churches when they stop doing Bingo, tear offs and selling beer at festivals to make money - that they don't pay tax on. Hypocrites!
Betras and Smith are both wrong on this one.
Why does the Valley think they are entitled to a piece of everything that comes to Ohio, especially over the much larger metropolitan areas?
And for those whining that they are going to "import" all the jobs and they won't be Ohio workers - nonsense. What, are they going to commute every day? If they do come from out of state it's much more reasonable to assume they will relocate. Plus wherever they are from they will be at the very least paying Ohio income taxes.
I'm not sure that writing this into the Constitution was the best way to go, but Ohioans need to pass this or shut their stupid mouths when more libraries and parks close as the state runs out of money.
Of course the Christian thing for the church to do would be to volunteer to pay taxes and help their fellow man in need.
smith , did god tell you about all the other casinos that are already here? i wonder if smith stands on the road protesting church fairs with money wheels and black jack and beer tents?? the only reason the church is involved is because their worried their profits might go down ...i bet if the churches could profit from ohio casinos they would be for it..... hypocrites