~ Moving one casino cannot revitalize Philipsburg ~
PHILIPSBURG:--- Member of Parliament Rolando Brison on Wednesday stressed that he remains firmly against the move of a casino from its current location on Front Street to the building formerly occupied by Super Plaza Department Store.
Brison said he has taken note of the press statements by the casino representatives and nothing has deterred him from his original opinion: it’s still not good for the country. “They should remain in their current location until a more suitable location is identified away from sensitive buildings. The area of Backstreet and Cannegieter Street affected by this building, are both heavily populated by young people daily because of the Sundial School and library,” Brison said, adding that at some point priorities for the country must take precedence.
The MP also dismissed the casino operator’s claim that moving the casino to the planned area would revitalize Philipsburg. “Moving one casino from one location to the next contributes nothing to the revival of Philipsburg at all. In fact, with this planned location it only hurts. There are other things that the Ministry of TEATT should be focusing on with regards to the revival of Philipsbug. The Ministries of TEATT and Finance has to ensure that capital investments, based on a sound plan, are available to truly revive Philipsburg,” MP Brison said.
He added that irrespective of whatever civil dispute that may exist between the building owner and casino operator, this is not particularly his concern and it is something that can be handled in civil law. “My concern is that the government is approving a relocation that is in violation of the existing casino policy that states it (a casino) should not be within 50 meters of a sensitive building. Furthermore, I will be calling government to Parliament’s Committee of TEATT to go over the current casino policy and address what other problematic issues exist,” he said.
MP Brison said several persons has expressed concerns to him via social media and daily as he is walking to work to the Parliament Building about the planned move of the casino. “I am firmly against this move,” he stressed.
