- Roanoke has partnered with a Virginia lobbying firm
- The consulting deal is to promote Roanoke for a casino
- Ronaoke’s state representatives are largely against a casino
A Virginia lobbying firm is being paid $6,000 a month to spearhead an effort to bring a casino resort to Roanoke.
As Casino.org has been reporting, the Roanoke City Council has been exploring whether to join Norfolk, Portsmouth, Bristol, Danville, and Petersburg in being host casino cities. The Virginia General Assembly would need to pass legislation to designate Roanoke for slot machines, table games, and sports betting.
With no state lawmaker who represents Roanoke reportedly keen on championing the city’s gaming effort, Roanoke has contracted Virginia lobbying firm Two Capitols Consulting to find willing lawmakers. Richmond-based Two Capitols is a small lobbying group that claims to have experience in numerous sectors, including gaming.
The lobbying contract was disclosed through an open records request. The terms were signed on September 22, roughly three weeks before it came to light that the Roanoke City Council was mulling a casino.
Roanoke Casino Proposal
Roanoke city officials suggest that obtaining a casino concession from the state and allowing the gaming facility at the Berglund Center would revitalize the Star City. The local tax money generated by the casino resort would go a long way in funding the projected $25 million the arena will need in upgrades and maintenance over the next decade, city officials say.
The Two Capitols contract stipulates that the firm’s lobbyists will work with the incoming Gov. Abigail Spanberger (D) administration to advocate for casino expansion.
Assist with all legislative, budget, and regulatory aspects of a special economic development project” in Roanoke, the terms include. Two Capitols will also “provide strategic advice and counsel on all legislative and administrative matters of importance to the City of Roanoke in regards to a special economic development project.”
Two Capitols’ “services to be provided” avoids using the term “casino.”
Perhaps most critically in the consulting pact is that Two Capitols will aid Roanoke in “building and strengthening relationships with key elected Virginia state officials and their staffs.” That process, the lobbying group says, involves “educating” lawmakers on the special economic development project.
Referendum Requirement
Aside from the city council, few have come out in support of a casino in Roanoke. This week, area residents used the last council meeting of the year to present their opposition to gaming. Roanoke’s state lawmakers have also spoken against the council’s casino consideration.
Virginia’s 2020 gaming law requires that voters in a designated casino city have the final say on whether a gaming development is authorized. A simple majority support is needed before the Virginia Lottery Board, which regulates casinos in the commonwealth, can grant a gaming license.
“[Virginia] shall not grant any initial license to operate a gaming operation in an eligible host city until a referendum on the question of whether casino gaming shall be permitted in such city is approved by the voters of such city,” the statute reads.
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