In the early months of 2009, when momentum built behind a proposal for a casino in Georgia’s historic Underground Atlanta, Republican leadership, headed by Governor Sonny Perdue, killed it. Business partners Dan O’Leary and John Aderhold, lease holders for Underground Atlanta, had presented a plan for a 29 story Vegas style hotel and casino with 5,000 lottery-like video gaming terminals. Although the plan will create badly needed jobs and increase the HOPE scholarship fund, when it was presented to the Georgia Lottery Board, which has close ties to Perdue, Chairman Tony Campbell announced that there would be no vote on the proposal.
The Georgia Lottery Board’s refusal to vote on the casino proposal stopped the plan, at least until new leadership is elected this fall. Because job creation has become the primary issue for Georgia’s struggling economy, there is an outside chance that the plan will be reconsidered when Perdue’s term expires this year. Front-running candidates, Republican Nathan Deal and Democrat Roy Barnes, have shown little support for a casino in Georgia, but if the state’s economic woes continue perhaps the new Governor might reconsider.
Comments
Sonny Purdue sucks. The Republicans don't care about anybody unless you have money or you own a big business. They could care less if you were living on the street in a cardboard box. As a matter of fact, they would probably fine you for it. Don't get me wrong, I hate Democrats too, just not as much as the Republicans. We need to get rid of people like Sonny Purdue though. He only does things if they look good for him or make him money. The guy is an idiot southern white boy. Maybe we'll get lucky and Purdue will have a heart attack and die.
Wow.
It is almost unbelievable that any legislative leader would not even look at the jobs to be created in a 24 per day, 7 day a week, 3 shifts of New jobs to be created, and the absence of their coming up with any positive ideas to assuage the State Budget deficit. Is Mississippi's state legslators, as an example, better or smarter than the state legislators of Georgia? Look at the odds on the back of any Georgia Lottery Scratchoff and tell me this is not gambling????????
Eugene- Absolutely. If the Republican leadership really is about job creation, a casino in Underground Atlanta is an idea they need to consider. Deal seemed open to the possibility, but his conservative backers quickly ammended his statement. Casinos in Tunica rescued the poorest county in the country; imagine what one could do for Atlanta.
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