By Jonathan Drapkin
Posted Jan. 3, 2016
Lofty resolutions are a tradition at the start of a new year. But a few resolutions must be well-grounded in reality – such as those that come along with a new resort casino.
For decades, Sullivan County pursued a dream to have a full-fledged, casino-style gaming facility. Last month, that dream was legally realized when the New York State Gaming Commission granted Montreign the license for its facility outside Monticello for just that, and more.
The casino and the accompanying resort will soon begin to add several thousand jobs to Sullivan County and the surrounding region, accompanied by the expected potential for spinoff revenues. It is against this backdrop that it becomes imperative to manage expectations and make plans that are thoughtful, feasible and broadly beneficial.
While many entities are statutorily scheduled to share in the forecasted revenues, just ask the folks at Montreign how many times over this money has been “spent” as everyone’s expectations build; the hands were out asking for a piece of the pie long before the license was even approved.
So it is for us, as residents of the region, to find the balance between elation of a dream realized and the realities of what might come. It would be great for the region if the casino surpasses our wildest expectations, but it is those very expectations that need to be managed.
As a county and as a region, Sullivan and the Catskills/Hudson Valley need to devise plans to ensure any newly acquired revenues are used wisely.
In addition, it is up to the region’s leaders to stimulate the creation of new opportunities outside of the realm of the casino/resort. With the right amount of innovation, regional approaches that benefit the wider population will have a chance to rise.
The responsibility to leverage this project for the betterment of the region falls on all of us. The casino and resort cannot be expected to cure every ill that the region faces. Solving income inequality, crumbling infrastructure, a faltering education system, and so many other problems was not part of the deal – with the exception of the idea that this new set of facilities, when integrated with other activities, might play a role in addressing these types of concerns.
It is imperative to acknowledge now, at the outset, that the casino/resort is but one addition, albeit an important one, to an economic landscape that includes, in Sullivan County alone, several other assets. The Center for Discovery – to date the county’s largest employer – and Bethel Woods Center for the Arts are two that come to mind. Already we see the makings of a diversified economy, with specialty health-care, culture and now an important addition to the tourism sector as anchors.
Our goal should be to further assemble a mosaic of what exists, what will soon exist, and what could exist to support a strong, multifaceted resurgence in a part of the region that has long needed just that.
Jonathan Drapkin is President and CEO of Hudson Valley Pattern for Progress, a regional research and policy organization based in Newburgh.
