Backers of higher bet limit in Deadwood say it will soften loss of mine

Monday, Oct. 9, 2000 | 9:29 a.m.

But an opponent says bigger bets and resulting higher gambling revenue would not do enough for the economy to make up for the loss of high-paying mine jobs and would expand gambling statewide.

If the initiative succeeds, it will provides jobs in Deadwood to at least some of the 360 people expected to be out of work when the mine shutdown is complete in 16 months, said Tom Blair, Lead-Deadwood school board president and owner of a campground and recreation area.

Homestake has had a presence in Lead for 124 years.

"The Homestake announcement is a kick in the pants that means we have to look for something to fill the void," Blair said. "Initiative One is one of the things we'll work on really hard."

Legal gambling started in Deadwood on Nov. 1, 1989. In fiscal year 1998, Deadwood slot machines, poker tables and blackjack had nearly $44 million in gross revenue.

Voters turned back a proposal in 1993 to raise the limit to $100.

Backers of the new effort to increase the limit say an explosion of gambling operations in nearby states like Colorado has made competition for gamblers more intense, making higher bet limits necessary.

"Even before the Homestake decision, we needed this option just to stay in the game," Blair said. "And after Homestake, we need it to create some job opportunities. Those mine workers are local folks. Most of them would surely like to stay around."

Kathleen Christopherson is not convinced, however, that raising the bet limit is the way to keep them around.

"I'm sympathetic to those people who will lose jobs," said Christopherson, organizer of No On Higher Stakes. "But the type of jobs at the mine and the pay there, $21 or $22 an hour, those things aren't the same as a door greeter or blackjack dealer in Deadwood. It's an apples-and-oranges comparison. It isn't the issue."

A bet limit 20 times higher than the existing limit will bring high-stakes gamblers to Deadwood and radically alter the character of the town, she said.

Also, by federal law, casinos on American Indian reservations can offer the same type of gambling allowed to any business by the state, she said. Eight of the nine reservations in South Dakota have gambling casinos.

"This has a statewide significance because of that ...," Christopherson said. "Everybody in South Dakota lives less than a two-hour drive from one of the casinos."

Bill Walsh, a backer of the initiative and owner of the Franklin Hotel in Deadwood, said even if the measure succeeds, casinos probably will raise their limits only gradually.

"I don't see my place having $100 card tables or slot machines," he said.