Ontario ends Niagara casino exclusivity, opening the region to new operators
OLG and MGE Niagara Entertainment agree to end exclusive rights, with a procurement for new casino operators planned later this year.
Ontario has reached a deal that clears the way for more casinos in the Niagara Region, ending the exclusive rights held by the company that runs the area's two existing casinos.
The agreement between the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation (OLG) and MGE Niagara Entertainment Inc. was announced on Aug. 13 by Doug Downey, the province's interim minister of tourism, culture and gaming. Under the deal, MGE gives up its exclusivity rights within OLG's Niagara gaming bundle. The company will keep operating Fallsview Casino Resort and Casino Niagara on OLG's behalf.
OLG says it will launch a procurement process later this year to find potential new casino operators for the region.
"Niagara has long been one of Ontario's premier tourism destinations," Downey said in announcing the change. OLG president and CEO Duncan Hannay said the agreement could help Niagara's casino business, and the economic benefits that flow from it, reach their full potential. Richard Taylor, president of Niagara Casinos, said the two existing casinos had been economic drivers for almost 30 years and welcomed further development.
In Ontario, OLG conducts and manages casino gaming, while private companies run the venues under agreements with the Crown agency. Exclusivity rights such as MGE's are granted through those agreements, so ending them opens the door to other operators.
Part of Destination Niagara
The move is part of the province's Destination Niagara strategy, which Premier Doug Ford unveiled in December. The plan includes several new casinos, a theme park and an expanded airport, among other projects. The government says it wants the region to draw 25 million visitors a year and double its tourism impact, adding an estimated $3 billion a year to Ontario's GDP.
Other pieces of the strategy are already moving. In July, Niagara District Airport received $9.7 million from the province to advance planning and design for its redevelopment, work the airport says is aligned with Destination Niagara.
Niagara Falls Mayor Jim Diodati, a long-time advocate of more competition in the local gaming market, welcomed the casino decision. He said additional casinos could help drive investment in tourism, hospitality and entertainment.
Not every part of the plan has been welcomed. Wayne Gates, the NDP MPP for Niagara Falls, told The Canadian Press he has heard substantial local opposition to a proposed second Ferris wheel near the falls. He has also questioned who will benefit from the casino changes and called for the region to be part of the discussions from the start.