Rideau Carleton Raceway Casino Expansion | U/C

[Acajack]

Originally Posted by J.OT13

I still don't understand why we would build a spur to the Casino. Why spend millions when a bus route will be more than adequate. And quite honestly, I just don't see people taking transit (having to transfer 3 times) to a casino.

Currently the Rapibus service from downtown Ottawa brings you to the Station du Casino (a few steps away from the entrance) in 15-20 minutes.

The drive from downtown Ottawa to Rideau-Carleton is about 30 minutes if you speed a bit and catch all the green lights on the way. I don't see how any public transport solution in my lifetime outside of a direct shuttle from downtown Ottawa will get people there in less than an hour.

That said, I agree with you that only a small fraction of people go to casinos via transit. At least in a metro area configured like ours. I am on the Rapibus line that goes by Lac Leamy from time to time, and while you see people who are obviously casino patrons getting on or off there, it's no more than 1, 2 or 3 per bus.

Most people go to casinos by private vehicle or by taxi. (Though maybe some of them go back home on transit if they've lost too much.)

[roger1818]

Originally Posted by lrt's friend

The current shuttle is once an hour. Hopefully that will improve.

But the current shuttle runs to Greenboro Station (with special trips to other parts of the city), and is thus a longer trip.

Regardless, I am thinking of a person's entire trip, door to door not just to get on the Trillium Line.

I understand, but my point is adding a transfer is painless if the schedules are synchronized.

[rocketphish]

Rocksino expansion receives OK from rural planning committee

Jon Willing, Ottawa Citizen
Published on: May 3, 2018 | Last Updated: May 3, 2018 12:42 PM EDT



Hard Rock Casino Ottawa has buy-in from council’s rural planning committee to add more gambling tables and build a bigger entertainment facility.

The committee on Thursday voted 5-0 in favour of the rezoning that would allow Hard Rock to go ahead with a $318-million expansion at the Rideau Carleton Raceway.

Hard Rock is asking the city for permission to add 20 more gaming tables, for a total of 55 tables. The company’s application also calls for a 2,500-seat theatre and a 200-room, nine-storey hotel. Hard Rock plans to add 750 slot machines to the existing 1,250 machines, but it doesn’t need the city’s approval for the slots.

Hard Rock has the majority interest in its partnership with the Rideau Carleton Raceway. They won the Ottawa-based gambling rights from Ottawa Lottery and Gaming Corp. last year.

The horse track has been operating since 1962. The slot machines arrived in 1998, transforming the building into a small casino. Now, the facility is about to get the international Hard Rock treatment.

City council in 2013 decided to keep all provincially sanctioned gambling at the Rideau Carleton Raceway as the OLG was going through its “modernization” program. There was pressure from the horse racing industry to get council’s backing for the raceway, while Ottawa Senators owner Eugene Melnyk pushed a plan to build a casino at his Kanata property.

Andrew Wright, a director with the Rideau Carleton Raceway, said the partnership with Hard Rock will bolster the horse racing industry.

John MacMillan of the National Capital Region Harness Horse Association said the industry backs Hard Rock’s expansion at the horse track.

“It gives us hope for an even brighter future,” MacMillan told the committee.

Some citizens who addressed the committee expressed concerns about the road conditions around the Albion Road property.

Paul Norris of the Hunt Club Park Community Association showed the committee a video of the current road conditions leading to the casino and questioned if the infrastructure can handle more traffic.

“We’re going to put additional strain on failing infrastructure,” Norris said, adding that he wants the stretch leading to the facility to be a “showcase” like casinos in other cities.

Doug Thompson, the former councillor who spoke on behalf of the Greely Business Association, echoed the need for better roads in rural south Ottawa, especially Earl Armstrong Road.

The committee called for consultations for future site plans and an area traffic study.

Gloucester-Southgate Coun. Diane Deans, one of council’s most vocal critics of the casino expansion, said a Bank Street entrance to the facility would be more appropriate than the current entrance off Albion Road. Deans expressed appreciation for Hard Rock’s willingness to discuss the traffic implications of the expansion.

Health concerns about gambling addictions weren’t part of the debate at the agriculture and rural affairs committee meeting, although Hard Rock vice-president Jeff Hook highlighted the company’s responsible gaming program. Many members of the Ottawa Public Health board are against expanded gambling access in Ottawa. The health unit has a new four-point plan to protect residents against problem gambling and it’s asking for a six-figure boost from the province to pay for the initiatives.

Council will vote on the committee’s recommendations Wednesday.

jwilling@postmedia.com
twitter.com/JonathanWilling

http://ottawacitizen.com/news/local-...ning-committee

[lrt's friend]

At least we are now creating a destination that will encourage reverse direction ridership on the Trillium Line instead of the old complaint that suburban LRT generates little ridership outside the peak commuter direction.

[Acajack]

Originally Posted by lrt's friend

At least we are now creating a destination that will encourage reverse direction ridership on the Trillium Line instead of the old complaint that suburban LRT generates little ridership outside the peak commuter direction.

Will this really generate ridership for the Trillium line? Unless I am missing something.

[roger1818]

Originally Posted by rocketphish

Gloucester-Southgate Coun. Diane Deans, one of council’s most vocal critics of the casino expansion, said a Bank Street entrance to the facility would be more appropriate than the current entrance off Albion Road.

Unless they move the entire facility to the other side of the racetrack, I just don't see how this would make any sense. By all means open up a second entrance off of Bank St for those coming from the east. Even make it the "Main Entrance." However, it makes no sense to divert all traffic there. You are just moving the problem from one neighbourhood to another.

Originally Posted by lrt's friend

At least we are now creating a destination that will encourage reverse direction ridership on the Trillium Line instead of the old complaint that suburban LRT generates little ridership outside the peak commuter direction.

Not if they move the entrance to Bank St.

[rocketphish]

Rideau Carleton Raceway casino expansion ready to rock with council backing

Jon Willing, Ottawa Citizen
Published on: May 9, 2018 | Last Updated: May 9, 2018 4:42 PM EDT

Hard Rock Casino Ottawa will build a hotel, concert theatre and expand gambling now that city council has backed a $318-million redevelopment of the Rideau Carleton Raceway.

Wednesday’s 18-5 vote in favour of the necessary land-use rules will let Hard Rock and the raceway begin the multi-year project, which is scheduled to be complete by 2022. Councillors Keith Egli, Catherine McKenney, Diane Deans, Jeff Leiper and Tobi Nussbaum voted against the zoning changes. Coun. Jody Mitic was absent from the meeting.

Some councillors on the losing end of the vote tried to restrict the growth of future gambling at the Albion Road site and direct more of the city’s gambling revenues to health programs.

McKenney tried to convince colleagues to cap the number of slot machines at the facility at 2,000 through zoning regulations. Nussbaum wanted two per cent of the city’s gambling revenues to help Ottawa Public Health fund a new plan to protect residents from problem gambling. Both councillors lost.

Hard Rock anticipates city hall will receive more than $12 million in gambling revenue through a host city contribution agreement with the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corp. when the entertainment facility is fully built. Today, the city receives about $6 million in gambling revenues under the agreement.

Mayor Jim Watson said council shouldn’t “undermine” the health unit’s request for more provincial money by diverting municipal funds to health programs. The health unit wants $150,000 in one-time funding from the province for a health promotion campaign, plus $200,000 more in annual funding.

“The province is responsible 100 per cent for OLG, for the Alcohol and Gaming Commission and for problem gambling,” Watson said. “For us to go and take that responsibility on, it would be the same as us saying let’s take over highway maintenance and let’s take over hospitals. That’s not our responsibility. The province takes the lion’s share of funding from casinos, they should, and are, providing 100-per-cent responsibility for problem gambling.”

McKenney’s bid to require council’s permission for any additional slot machines beyond 2,000 was an attempt to put slots on an equal footing with table games when it comes to municipal restrictions. The maximum number of table games, now 55, is in the property zoning, but the number of slots isn’t. A controversy erupted earlier this year over the number of slot machines when councillors learned Hard Rock plans to add 750 slots to the 1,250 existing machines. Some councillors thought they had the OLG’s assurance to keep the number at 1,250, only to learn a council vote last September washed out any previous commitments.

The happiest councillor Wednesday was George Darouze, who said a redeveloped raceway will be an economic boon to his Osgoode ward. The city should “roll out the red carpet rather than putting sticks in the wheel” for Hard Rock and the raceway, Darouze said.

The Hard Rock concert theatre will have 2,500 seats and the nine-storey hotel will have 200 rooms. The company plans to install restaurants and displays of music memorabilia.

Horse racing will continue at the facility.

<snip>

http://ottawacitizen.com/news/local-...ouncil-backing

[rocketphish]

The Hard Rock Ottawa Raceway and Casino (formerly Rideau Carleton Raceway and Slots) is proposing the construction of an addition to the existing casino, a hotel, and redesigned surface parking areas. The addition to the casino will add approximately 7,019 m2 gross floor area to the casino floor, 106 m2 gross floor area for a retail store, 4,692 m2 gross floor area for restaurants, and 2,587 m2 gross floor area for a 1,600-seat theatre. The proposed hotel is accessed through the casino floor. The 178-room hotel has an approximate gross floor area of 9,283 m2.

Development application:
http://app01.ottawa.ca/postingplans/...appId=__BPJ8AX

Plans:










Renderings:

[Jamaican-Phoenix]

Ugh...

[kevinbottawa]

Definitely doesn't look as nice as Lac Leamy.

[Harley613]

A slightly improved hole for bored seniors to dump their fixed income into.

[kwoldtimer]

Originally Posted by kevinbottawa

Definitely doesn't look as nice as Lac Leamy.

Did anyone have expectations that it would?

[Acajack]

Originally Posted by kwoldtimer

Did anyone have expectations that it would?

I was gonna say...

I mean, what is the potential payoff for investing in an especially lavish facility in that location? (Relative to the "nice bingo hall" look?)

I can (maybe) see it being worth it in downtown Ottawa, but not out there.

[kevinbottawa]

Originally Posted by kwoldtimer

Did anyone have expectations that it would?

I expected more from a big company like Hard Rock.

[kwoldtimer]

Originally Posted by kevinbottawa

I expected more from a big company like Hard Rock.

Because of their reputation for good taste and sophistication?

[lrt's friend]

Originally Posted by Acajack

I was gonna say...

I mean, what is the potential payoff for investing in an especially lavish facility in that location? (Relative to the "nice bingo hall" look?)

I can (maybe) see it being worth it in downtown Ottawa, but not out there.

It ended up out there because Mayor Watson (during his first period as mayor) did not want it within the city limits.

We have now had two opportunities to have such a facility in the centre of the city, and both times it was turned down. The result is that we have two casinos out in the suburbs.

We get what we deserve.

[CityTech]

Originally Posted by lrt's friend

It ended up out there because Mayor Watson (during his first period as mayor) did not want it within the city limits.

We have now had two opportunities to have such a facility in the centre of the city, and both times it was turned down. The result is that we have two casinos out in the suburbs.

We get what we deserve.

It wasn't because Watson didn't want a casino in the urban area, it's because Watson wanted to protect the Raceway's owners from competition. Classic cronyism.

[Acajack]

Originally Posted by lrt's friend

It ended up out there because Mayor Watson (during his first period as mayor) did not want it within the city limits.

We have now had two opportunities to have such a facility in the centre of the city, and both times it was turned down. The result is that we have two casinos out in the suburbs.

We get what we deserve.

Where is the second suburban/exurban casino in Ottawa?

[YOWflier]

Originally Posted by kevinbottawa

I expected more from a big company like Hard Rock.

The new Seminole Hard Rock in Fort Lauderdale/Hollywood is pretty sweet. They do great light shows with the guitar.

[Harley613]

Originally Posted by ac888yow

The new Seminole Hard Rock in Fort Lauderdale/Hollywood is pretty sweet. They do great light shows with the guitar.

I spent almost an entire day exploring the 66 story Hard Rock Megalopolis in Panama City this July. Incredible place. This brand has many levels I guess.