Mayor Jim Diodati is excited the premier wants competition for casinos, leading to other investment
A renewed sense of optimism for Niagara Falls' mayor now that the provincial government wants greater competition among local casinos.
Premier Doug Ford says he wants to talk to Mohegan Entertainment, that owns the local casinos, about being part of growing the city.
Mayor Jim Diodati says council has been trying for years, and it's not just about gaming. "In Vegas now, gaming not even the #1 reason people go. They go for the entertainment, the shows, the sphere, go see the UFC fights, they've got the sporting events such as the Golden Knights, and the Las Vegas Raiders."
He doesn't know when this would happen, since it'll be the province working on this.
He adds Mohegan will benefit with all the spin off investment, including at the airport. "We're the biggest population in the country, without regular daily scheduled flights. So, it would involve infrastructure investments at the airport, a visitor transportation people moving type of system, there'd be a lot of investments and upgrades of the province."
The mayor says no previous provincial government has expressed this interest, adding monopolies are not good.