“MyOhioNow”

Summary persuasive case 2008 A case: claims supported by evidence Used for a campaign Not a speech Follow the reasoning

Introduction – 1 of 3 Remarkable, isn’t it?

Introduction – 2 of 3 5,000 people move INTO Las Vegas monthly Last year, 52 million visitors 153,000 hotel rooms McCarren the 8th busiest airport in world More than 35 wedding chapels 152,000 slot machines, and 7,200 tables

Introduction – 3 of 3 No doubt: people love entertainment ! Ohio doesn’t have a “Las Vegas.” Ohio has farmland … and Empty factories Poverty Illness Old age and Dispair

Need - 1 of 4 What should happen to turn Ohio communities around? A statewide commitment to education A statewide focus on 21st century jobs A program of infrastructure repair These take money. Big money.

Need - 2 of 4 But our money is bailing out … to Las Vegas Cancun Mountaineer Park Niagra Falls Elizabeth, Indiana

Need - 3 of 4 We’re shipping it every day … ! $ xxx,xxx,xxx to Las Vegas $ xxx,xxx,xxx to New York $ xxx,xxx,xxx to West Virginia $ xx,xxx,xxx to Indiana And the numbers are increasing !! Graph of entertainment outflow, 1988 – 2008 Graph of projections, 2008 - 2028

Need - 4 of 4 In 2007, $xxx,xxx left Mahoning County alone ! That’s enough to operate an entire hospital or an entire school system for a year. That’s big money, as Mayor XXXX says: “ Yadda yadda yadda yadda.” Next year, we’ll lose enough to run the whole county.

Plan 1 of 3 So, what can we do? “If we can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em !” We must build a casino complex here in Ohio Ohioans voted against regular casino gaming, so we can’t do that. Ohioans voted against riverboat gaming, too We’ll put a casino complex in Franklin County, Ohio’s center.

Plan 2 of 3 95 acres; 200,000 sf of casino floor space World-class: 95 acres; 200,000 sf of casino floor space 5,000 slot machines (Rivers has 2,900) 150 table games (Rivers has 100) Luxury hotel with 1,500 rooms (Rivers has none; Mountaineer has 350) Restaurants, golf course, 2,500-seat entertainment center Specialty retail, spa and conference center

Plan 3 of 3 All of Ohio will win: $800 million in gross gaming revenue will generate $240 million in tax income. Divided among all 88 Ohio counties, based on population $2.4 million will be directed to programs supporting problem gambling 5,400 construction jobs; 3,800 permanent jobs

Plan Meets Need 1 of 2 One centrally-located entertainment complex will create more revenue than could several local casinos The financial pro formas explain the plan Other states with one-stop casinos are thriving

Plan Meets Need 2 of 2 It will be supported by all Ohioans Research shows that Ohioans preferan Ohio casino to out-of-state ones Research shows that Ohioans find the 2.5-hour drive to be acceptable Our survey of Ohio travel/tourism boards shows that the conference center would have a significant number of bookings

No objections? 1 of 2 No new problems New taxes will pay for increased use of public services in Franklin County Programs for the treatment of problem gamblers will receiive $2.4 million. New administrative costs to regulate the casino will receive $2.4 million.

No objections? 2 of 2 Some people object to gambling on moral grounds. But the State of Ohio already operates The Ohio Lottery, the nation’s 9th largest, with $2.7 billion in sales receipts Clearly, Ohioans already travel to casinos in neighboring states and to entertainment centers. Gambling is ubiquitous. The Franklin County casino would operate openly and under state supervision.

Call for action So let’s break ground. Let’s create jobs for Ohio Let’s create revenue for our counties Let’s keep Ohio money in Ohio Let’s create an entertainment complex that all of Ohio will be proud of Let’s help Ohioans stay in Ohio for their entertainment