If the Hollister City Council is determined to wait to see what
the Miwok Casino has to offer before deciding whether they support
it, we think they should take the process one step further. They
should drive a hard bargain then take it to an advisory vote of the
people, perhaps as soon as November if the governor is successful
in calling a special state-wide election.
If the Hollister City Council is determined to wait to see what the Miwok Casino has to offer before deciding whether they support it, we think they should take the process one step further. They should drive a hard bargain then take it to an advisory vote of the people, perhaps as soon as November if the governor is successful in calling a special state-wide election.
We have a nagging suspicion that the state might approve a gaming compact for the Miwoks even without local support. It certainly would be a shame to oppose a casino only to have it approved by the state without having negotiated a dime for San Benito County.
So, the Hollister City Council should do two things: send a representative to Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s office to get real assessment of how likely he is to approve a gaming compact without local support, and the council should meet with Miwok representatives and tell them exactly what they want.
The first thing that the city ought to demand is perpetual revenue sharing, and then compile a wish list of other needs. Perhaps it will be a fixed Highway 25, more police officers, a new sewer plant, an expansion for Hazel Hawkins Hospital.
These are just ideas, starting points for the negotiations the city seems to want to entertain. We encourage council members to drive a hard bargain in the best interests of its residents, and when it arrives at the best deal possible, tell the Miwok representatives that they’ll take the proposal to the voters for a clear and decisive stance the state can’t ignore.
What it comes down to is this: Just like attracting retailers or factories, there is a point where a municipality is made whole by a business. Given the local control that municipalities give up when casinos arrive, leaders need to find that point, then go as far beyond it as possible when considering a tribal casino.
At that point, the voters can decide if that specific casino proposal is a good one for the community.
Casino opponents who believe that no casino is a good casino – and it’s clear there are many – can campaign against the proposal on the moral and economic grounds they find persuasive. Those who want the jobs and revenue a casino would bring can make their case.
If the council has a price, they should name it. Then they should let the voters of Hollister decide if the price is right.
