New Brunswick Takes First Step Toward Casino Gambling

Tourism is down in the province of New Brunswick, and when tourism is down, a casino is usually not far behind, as the province has decided to allow their first casino.

Over the past five years there has been a decline of 25 percent in New Brunswick's tourism, and while a casino will not completely solve the problem, officials from the province believe it will help.

"We feel when visitors are coming to New Brunswick, giving them more options, more things to do while they're here in the province will certainly help", said Finance Minister Victor Bourdreau, in talking about the lagging tourism industry.

Requests for proposals were issued on Thursday and the hope is that by 2010, there will be an operating casino in the province. The only province left without casino gambling after today's announcement is Newfoundland and Labrador.

The deadline for proposals is set for March 11th, and anyone looking to make a proposal should include other services such as restaurants, entertainment facilities, hotel rooms, and possibly harness racing, as they will be key components in the application reviews.



2007-11-08