THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Wednesday, February 1, 1995 TAG: 9502010449
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B3 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY ROBERT LITTLE, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: RICHMOND LENGTH: Long : 110 lines
Hundreds of African Americans from Hampton Roads are expected in the Capitol today to protest riverboat gambling, and the state's Republican Party chairman is using the opportunity to court the black vote.
Chairman Patrick M. McSweeney said as many as 20 buses full of protesters will visit Richmond today, most of them African Americans. He called the group ``true leaders'' of the black community, an apparent stab at Del. Jerrauld C. Jones, D-Norfolk, who is black and who is riverboat gambling's primary sponsor in the legislature.
The protest ``represents another step forward in the GOP dialogue with Virinia's true African-American leaders,'' McSweeney wrote in a news release. ``Too often, the self-appointed `leaders' of the black community have pushed programs that the grass-roots individuals know to be harmful to that community.''
The group, headed by Rev. Anthony Page of First Baptist Church of Lamberts Point, will attend a Senate hearing on riverboat gambling at 2:30 p.m.
McSweeney called it ``unusual'' that African Americans would publicly criticize a black office-holder.
``The fact that Rev. Page and the busloads of concerned citizens from Hampton Roads are coming to protest Del. Jones' support for this bill is a wonderful sign for the future of Virginia politics,'' McSweeney wrote. ``The move shows that all of us are growing beyond the politics of race, and moving toward political identification based on issues.'' VIRGINIA TECH STUDY SEES PROSPERITY IN CASINOS
The founder of Virginia Tech's Hotel, Restaurant and Institutional Management department released a study Tuesday challenging claims that riverboat casinos are bad for nearby, established businesses.
Michael Olsen, who conducted a $15,000 study of riverboat gambling for the pro-gaming Virginia Riverboat Council in Norfolk, claimed the floating casinos could attract as many as 3.9 million visitors each year from out of state and provide a healthy boost in local tax revenue.
``In the end, we couldn't find too much that was really negative about riverboat gaming,'' Olsen said. ``We heard stories, but most of them could not be substantiated.''
The findings contradict a recent Florida study showing that casinos - of any type - would simply take dollars away from other attractions.
After studying riverboat gaming operations in Illinois, Mississippi and other states, Olsen concluded that the casinos provide competition for land-based hotels and restaurants. But, he said, they also create more customers and have not affected other business.
The study also pointed to a ``competitive necessity'' for riverboat gambling in Virginia, because neighboring states are planning gambling operations.
A bill before the General Assembly calls for a statewide referendum on riverboat gambling, and for the establishment of seven floating casinos in Hampton Roads and Richmond if the proposal passes.
According to Olsen's study, typical gamblers in Virginia would be older men with above-average incomes and college educations. He said the state could expect 3.9 million out-of-state visitors to gamble an average of 1.6 times a year, and more than 3.7 million in-state visitors who gamble an average of five times a year.The House gave preliminary approval Tuesday to a bill that expands the area in which a license is required for recreational saltwater fishing. HOUSE VOTES TO REQUIRE LICENSE FOR OCEAN FISHING
House Bill 1850 would require anyone fishing in the ocean to get a license; currently, the license is required in all tidal waters except the ocean. Sponsored by a quartet of waterfront delegates - Republicans Robert S. Bloxom of Accomack and Harvey B. Morgan of Gloucester, and Democrats I. Vincent Behm Jr. of Hampton and W. Tayloe Murphy Jr. of Warsaw - the bill is aimed at sustaining the Virginia Saltwater Fishing Tournament.
Bloxom explained that Gov. George F. Allen does not want the state to use tax revenue to fund the tournament. To keep the tournament alive, the bill would give it 15 percent of all money from the licenses.
In the past year, Bloxom said, the licenses have provided $1.3 million to the state. Adding the oceanside areas would increase that by $83,000 annually, he said.
The House gave preliminary approval to a number of other bills Tuesday, including:
HB 1816, allowing the Budweiser blimp to fly over Virginia without obtaining permission from the ABC Board.
HB 1889, designating the timber rattlesnake as the official state reptile.
HB 1843, allowing convenience stores and supermarkets to sell ``low-alcohol beverages'' like Lynchburg Limeade - a combination of Jack Daniels whiskey and limeade.
HB 1659, lowering the percentage of revenue that mixed-drink licensee must obtain from food sales from 45 percent to 35 percent.
All the bills must clear a final vote and then will go to the Senate for consideration. MEMO: Staff writer Greg Schneider and the Associated Press contributed to this
report. ILLUSTRATION: Photo
State Republican Party Chairman Patrick M. McSweeney.
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