FACTS

Experience in Florence, Oregon

• 2003 - 80 acres of open dune and forested land in Florence, Oregon (population 7,500):
  
  • Total arrests: NONE
    
  • Medical assists: NONE
    
  • Drug incidents: NONE
    
  • Motor vehicle collisions: NONE
    
• 2005 - new tent casino on same property reported:
  
• Total arrests: 63
  ("majority being drug related and occurring at the casino in Florence")
  
• Medical assists: 67
  
• Drug incidents: 52
  
• Motor vehicle collisions: 21

Even though the casino developer in Florence had 80 acres on which to place their casino, they chose to put it within 300 feet of an existing family neighborhood. This photo was taken April 9, 2006:

Below are a few snapshots, taken in the Coastal Highlands Neighborhood in Florence, Oregon, during a casino "Event". The casino has no legal access from this neighborhood, but when the casino parking lot is full, patrons park here and then walk the couple of hundred feet across the sand to the casino.

"Events" held by the casino to lure customers cause traffic and parking problems never before present in this quiet little residential neighbornood. During "events" casino patrons cannot find sufficient parking on the casino property, so they park on neighborhood streets. Late night drinking gamblers trespass across yards as they return to their cars which they left in the adjacent neighborhood, causing residents to be fearful for their properties and families. Casino patrons are parking on roadsides, creating traffic hazards on County roads that were previously safe.

So begins the initial detrimental effects that an off-reservation casino brings into a small town. Some families are choosing to leave their homes rather than face the effects a casino in their neighborhood will have on their families.

It might make an interesting story for the media. It makes a painful story for the affected neighbors.

Neighborhood Impact
2/11/04 - One result of casino construction activity	3/17/04 - View from neighbor's back yard
7/29/04, 7:30 pm "casino event" Thursday - Coastal Highlands, looking east	8/3/04, 7:30 pm "normal" Tuesday, - Coastal Highlands, looking east
7/29/04, 7:30 pm "casino event" Thursday, - Coastal Highlands, looking west	8/3/04, 7:30 pm "normal" Tuesday - Coastal Highlands, looking west
7/29/04, 7:30 pm "casino event" Thursday - Zebrawood	8/3/04, 7:30 pm "normal" Tuesday - Zebrawood
County Road Impact
7//29/04, 7:30 pm, "casino event" - North Fork Road, looking North	7//29/04, 7:30 pm, "casino event" - North Fork Road, looking South

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• Impact of Increased Casino Traffic on Corridor Safety: An analysis of four two-mile segments having high crash rate/severity was performed to quantify the predicted increase in crash rate resulting from the increased casino traffic. The selected segments were representative of both the higher volume traffic at the east end of the corridor as well as segments in the lower volume areas at the west end. Using this representative sample of the corridor, the analysis revealed a trend that can be extrapolated to represent segments for the whole corridor. The results show that as traffic increases, the estimated number of crashes and crash rate/mile/year will also increase. An equation was derived that relates percentage increase in traffic volume to percentage increase in predicted crash rates. (4/8/05 ODOT Safety Study)
  
  
• CT - Since casinos opened in two small, rural Connecticut towns in the 1990s, there has been a sharp increase in local traffic, police calls, and drunken driving arrests, according to a Globe analysis, and the changes have spilled over into neighboring towns as well. Traffic is up as much as 275% near the casinos -- a source of frustration for many residents. Norwich police have confronted many of the same issues as the casino towns down the road. Even with the population stagnant since 1990, police work has increased, according to statistics. Motor vehicle violations are up roughly 165% since 1992. Car accidents have risen 57%. Drunken driving arrests are up 17 percent. (7/22/07 - Towns feel effect of casinos)
  
  
• Traffic accidents on three major roads around Thunder Valley Casino near Lincoln (California) have increased 92 percent since the gaming facility opened in June 2003.Statistics from the California Highway Patrol also show arrests for driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs have skyrocketed more than 600 percent on the same roads. (Sacramento Bee, 12/16/04)
  
  
• Lane County (Oregon) Sheriff, Jan Clements: "He said some of his concerns about it [casino] were increases in problems with driving under the influence of intoxicants and traffic" "I have concerns about the level of activity and traffic is first and foremost among those ... And I suspect they will serve alcohol somewhere on the casino property which could increase the volume of prospective inebriated drivers." (Siuslaw News article re: presentation to Florence Chamber of Commerce, July 19, 2003)
  
  
• "Shoulder width is the most prevalent geometric deficiency on the highway. Narrow shoulders limit the ability of a driver to avoid a collision." (OR 126W Florence-Eugene Highway Conditions Report -- 2001, ODOT, December 2002)
  
  
• "Overall system deficiencies, regional issues, and local "'hot spots'" can have a major impact on the local and regional economy." (OR 126W Florence-Eugene Highway Conditions Report -- 2001, ODOT, December 2002)
  
  
• "Sharp curves limit the ability of a driver to avoid collisions and increase the likelihood that a vehicle may leave the roadway or cross the centerline." (OR 126W Florence-Eugene Highway Conditions Report -- 2001, ODOT, December 2002)
  
  
• "Portions of 126W have now reached or have exceeded their original design life, and increased traffic volumes are creating (or soon will) difficult operational and safety problems." (OR 126W Florence-Eugene Highway Conditions Report - 2001, ODOT, December 2002)
  
  
• "126W is important because it is the main transportation facility between the state's second largest city (Eugene) and all points west of Eugene." (OR 126W Florence-Eugene Highway Conditions Report - 2001, ODOT, December 2002)
  
  
• "Currently, 10 percent of the Corridor is subject to high congestion; 30 percent, moderate congestion ..." "High congestion occurs between Mapleton and Noti, along curved, steep areas in the Coast Range. High congestion also occurs in Eugene and westward toward Veneta." (Highway 126 West Interim Corridor Strategy, ODOT, September 1997)

• CasinoWatch
• NCALG - National Coalition Against Legalized Gambling
• USPACT