Open every day of the year — including Christmas — OLG Brantford Casino is a sensory experience.

Rows of slot machines flash millions of bright lights in every direction. Strains of music compete with each other. There's music on the overhead radio. Robotic music streams from the games.

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In the poker room at the back, players huddle at the tables in groups of 10 under low lighting, their faces fixed in concentration. The clicking sound of chips fills the room.

This is an entertainment hub, the OLG says. And it could be Hamilton's future.

Currently, Hamilton has 801 slots at Flamboro Downs through the Slots at Racetracks program, which the province discontinued this year. By late February, council will have to tell the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation whether it welcomes gaming beyond the Flamboro Downs.

If council votes to proceed, the OLG will choose an operator through a request for proposals (RFP) process. Tim McCabe, Hamilton's manager of economic development, said recently that a handful of operators have already expressed interest.

Timeline:

Nov. 30 — city gaming facility subcommittee meeting

Dec. 3— Hamilton public health officials will present a report about a possible casino to the city's board of health

Dec. 13 — city gaming facility subcommittee meeting

February — vote required on whether the city wants a casino

March 31 — OLG lease for slots at Flamboro Downs ends, although the OLG is negotiating a shorter-term lease

In Brantford, there's an overhaul happening too. Since the casino opened in 1999, the OLG has operated it. It will soon be run by a private operator also bidding in an RFP process, although when the change will happen is not currently known.

The current general manager is Grant Darling, who came to Brantford from Ceasars Windsor. When it comes to the Brantford casino, Darling makes a quiet but consistent case.

Firstly, it's one of the steadiest businesses in town. The casino is open 365 days a year and the parking lot is consistently packed.

The facility only goes dark from 6 p.m. on Christmas Eve until noon on Christmas Day, and when it reopens, 'there's a lineup,' Darling said.

Secondly, the casino, which has 534 slot machines and 55 table games, employs about 850 Brantford area residents. (Seven, however, were laid off earlier this year.) That ranges from table game dealers to servers in the Getaway restaurant, to security and the technical jobs required to maintain thousands of pieces of machinery.

Most of the jobs are unionized, Darling said. And locals with no casino experience are hired and trained to be table game dealers, among other roles.

Other stories in the series:

What's the social cost of a casino in Hamilton? Brantford knows

'These are good paying jobs that we can train people to do,' he said. 'That's a great boost to any town in this economic climate.'

Thirdly, there's the purchasing power. Whenever possible, the casino buys local, and that has contributed $17 million to the economy since 1999, he said.

But other say there are downsides. Local addictions counsellors say they see gambling addicts drawn in by the casino. A recent Hamilton study shows that there is a small number of low-income residents who spend a lot of money at casinos.

Coun. Jason Farr, who represents the downtown, is still formulating his stance.

He has done phone surveys and public meetings with residents. Every time he attends an event, he asks the question: do you support a casino, and if you do, do you support it downtown?

Feedback so far has been about 65 per cent against, Farr said.

'I hear don't mess with the momentum currently on the go, that a casino could stymie the smaller businesses,' he said. 'There are quite a few good arguments for and quite a few against.'

Council reaffirmed its stance earlier this year that it prefers to keep gaming at Flamboro Downs. If there was a vote tomorrow, Coun. Bernie Morelli said he would stick to that.

Have Your Say

Join us for a live chat on Thursday, Nov. 29 at 7 p.m.

Panelists:

• Former mayor Larry Di Ianni, who is in favour of a casino development in Hamilton
• Local business owner Matthew Green, who does not want a casino in Hamilton

Location: cbc.ca/hamilton/casino

'I've been happy with the setup that currently exists,' said Morelli. 'But I think there's a broader picture that needs to be reviewed and I will certainly keep an open mind.'

Constituent feedback, Morelli said, has been 'about 50/50,' although the anti side tends to be more adamant.

So far, 37 municipalities have expressed interest in either continuing to host gaming or to be a new host, OLG spokesperson Tony Bitonti said.

North Bay, Kenora and Belleville have voted in favour. Toronto is still debating the issue. Ottawa has voted in favour of moving its Slots at Racetracks site downtown, and Kingston has said it's open to the opportunity if a private operator wants to move OLG Casino Thousand Islands, Bitonti said.

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The slot machines won’t be pulled out of Flamboro Downs this month after all.

A new five-year deal between the racetrack and the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation — announced Saturday — will replace their existing lease agreement, which expires on March 31.

“The end of this month was the deadline and so this gives not only our staff comfort, but also our guests and our corporation and investors, to know we’ll be continuing operating,” said Howard Blank, spokesperson for the Great Canadian Gaming Corporation, operator of Flamboro Downs.

RELATED: Deals with more racetracks for 2013 season despite loss of slots

The news follows an announcement made by Premier Kathleen Wynne on Friday that horse racing will resume this year at six tracks across the province, thanks to secured transition funding agreements.

The future of horse racing is still up in the air at Flamboro Downs, which has not yet secured a transition agreement with the province.

But Hamilton Councillor Sam Merulla said he believes it’s only a matter of time before that happens.

The Great Canadian Gaming Corporation said in a statement Saturday that it believes the confirmed continuation of OLG slots at the tracks will be helpful in further discussions with the province to secure the horse racing funding.

TOPIC: The casino debate

Georgian Downs, another track operated by Great Canadian Gaming, has also entered into an agreement in principle with the OLG to continue their slots program.

It has been a tumultuous time for the horse racing industry after the Dalton McGuinty government announced last year it planned to cancel the $345-million-a-year share of slot machine revenues that went to tracks.

Flamborough MPP Ted McMeekin conceded recently that the budget announcement created “doom and gloom” about the horse racing industry.

But Flamborough Councillor Robert Pasuta said this latest news is encouraging for the local rural community.

Pasuta also said the announcement “makes Flamboro officially viable” for a casino.

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Council declared Flamboro Downs the preferred location for a casino (should the city get one) in February, unless it could be proved unviable.

The OLG announcement “supports our vision,” Pasuta said. “It shows right now that everyone is supporting our first choice: Flamboro Downs and the Flamboro slots.”

OLG spokesperson Tony Bitonti said Sunday that this agreement does “not necessarily” rule out the possibility of a downtown casino.

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That decision will depend on the Request for Proposal process to secure a private sector operator.

“All this does mean that we (the slots) are legally there past March 31, 2013,” Bitonti said.

For now, Councillor Sam Merulla said he “applauds the OLG for endorsing our original position.”

“From my perspective, it (the casino debate) should be over and I look forward to it being over,” he said.

Despite this weekend’s good news, the local horse racing industry will still be shrinking.

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“The reality is, the industry is going to be smaller than it was and we’ve said that all along … but there’s room in Ontario for horse racing and health care and education,” Wynne said Friday.

Pasuta said he expects about two-thirds of the horse racing industry will survive.

MORE: City has options if slot revenues were to disappear

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