Leaders: Casino fears not realized - Iowa City Press Citizen

Local leaders say the Riverside Casino and Golf Resort has been a boon for surrounding communities and has brought few, if any, of the problems once feared.

Expectations of increased foreclosures, surging crime and gambling addictions once threatened the project from getting

off the ground, but five years after the casino opened, they say fears haven't come to fruition. Instead, locals report more job opportunities, entertainment options and a wave of community projects."We haven't seen anything. (Crime) is up a little bit, but not other than speeding (infractions are) up because of more traffic. There are no more foreclosures than anyone else. I think it's been a huge benefit," said Todd Yahnke, 42, a member of the Riverside City Council who has lived in town 11 years.Yahnke said friends have worked at the casino and have worked their way into management roles. He said he and his wife have attended several shows there, and grants from casino revenue have funded a new fire station, city hall and Veteran's Park. It also has spurred other development, including a new medical clinic and furniture store, he said.Without the casino, those things "we probably wouldn't have gotten," Yahnke said.It's a similar story in surrounding communities.About six miles down the road in Lone Tree, a wave of people have moved in for work, which has prompted a surge of new houses, said Helen Lemley, 66, who serves on the Lone Tree City Council."I think in our area, we all have a pretty positive outlook on it," said Lemley, who said she hasn't even heard anecdotal stories of locals developing a gambling addiction or seen increased crime.Lemley, who is retired, worked at the casino for a while as a nighttime supervisor and later as a cashier. Many people have moved to the community for work and the casino has provided jobs for people already living in the community, she said.Having a job at the casino also eliminates a commute to Iowa City or Cedar Rapids, she said."It has given them an opportunity close by for work," Lemley said. "I got the same wage there that I got working somewhere for eight years and 24 miles away. So I saved some money that way."Dave Plyman has been the city administrator in Washington, which is a 20-minute drive from the casino, for the past nine years.He recalls when the casino was proposed it only passed a public vote by a couple percentage points. Some people were ethically or morally opposed to gambling and others thought it would present issues for people with gambling addictions, he said."I don't think we've noticed any effects due to crime. The effects have been mainly positive in that it employs a lot of people in our county and funds a lot of projects for not-for-profit organizations that would not have been funded other wise," Plyman said, noting money for a new library and park.

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