Millennium Gaming brought leaders from Washington County, Pennsylvania to Concord to tout the benefits of a casino to lawmakers at a lunch meeting today. Millennium runs The Meadows casino and racetrack in Washington. If New Hampshire allows a casino at Rockingham Park, Millennium would develop it.
Washington County Commission Chair Larry Maggi says The Meadows has generated millions of dollars in revenue. But as a former State Trooper and Sheriff, he was nervous when the casino opened seven years ago.
“We were concerned about prostitution, we were concerned about drug and gaming addictions. And I checked the statistics in our area. The numbers are negligible. It didn’t move at all, our crime rate,” Maggi says.
He adds that his county has seen no dramatic increase in gambling addiction treatment, or demand for homeless services related to gaming. But casino opponents point to a number of studies that show problem gambling, drunk driving, and white collar crime have historically increased near casinos.