2008 Woodie Awards
RSSCampus opinions vary on new casino
By Alexandra Rolnik
Issue date: 11/12/07 Section: News
A new casino is to be built on the site of the Bethlehem Steel Mill by early 2009. The casino, which will be joined with a hotel, shopping mall and events center, has brought mixed reactions from the members of the Lehigh and the South Side communities.
Seth Moglen, professor of English and director of the humanities center, co-organized the South Side Initiative, a program developed to educate the people of South Bethlehem and Lehigh about the development of the new casino.
Moglen said he believes at least two possible outcomes of the development of the new casino exist.
"The casino will generate a great deal of revenue, which will contribute to tax revenues for the city and could, therefore, enhance social services for the people of Bethlehem," Moglen said. "This activity could produce jobs for the people of South Bethlehem and could fuel economic growth in the city."
On the other hand, Moglen said negative outcomes are also conceivable.
"In some other places, for example in Atlantic City," Moglen said, "casinos have had the effect of extracting money from cities and have contributed to the collapse of local businesses and to the erosion of urban centers."
Thomas Hyclak, professor of economics and co-chairman of the South Side Development Study Group said he believes the issue has not had an opportunity to be studied carefully enough.
"Some people are concerned about an act on crime rates, which might be an issue to look into," Hyclak said. "Some people are concerned about the possibility that the proximity of the casino might produce gambling issues with Lehigh faculty and students. The evidence is not overwhelming for either side. This is why President Gast set up a study group to see what happened at other schools."
Lehigh students have mixed reactions. As a positive impact students feel the casino will increase local business and will also provide a source of entertainment outside of campus.
"The casino would provide more commerce to the businesses of Bethlehem and would increase the property value," Jake Gorelick, '09, said. "Also, people love to gamble so it would be a form of entertainment for people of age."
On the other hand, some Lehigh students are concerned about the kind of people who will come to the casino.
"While the proposed casino will draw many new faces to the Bethlehem area, we might not be attracting the type of people we want to bring into our community," James McBratney, '09, said. "Do we really want to surround ourselves with people that think it is OK to gamble away their hard earned money? No, that's not the kind of Bethlehem I want to live in."
Seth Moglen, professor of English and director of the humanities center, co-organized the South Side Initiative, a program developed to educate the people of South Bethlehem and Lehigh about the development of the new casino.
Moglen said he believes at least two possible outcomes of the development of the new casino exist.
"The casino will generate a great deal of revenue, which will contribute to tax revenues for the city and could, therefore, enhance social services for the people of Bethlehem," Moglen said. "This activity could produce jobs for the people of South Bethlehem and could fuel economic growth in the city."
On the other hand, Moglen said negative outcomes are also conceivable.
"In some other places, for example in Atlantic City," Moglen said, "casinos have had the effect of extracting money from cities and have contributed to the collapse of local businesses and to the erosion of urban centers."
Thomas Hyclak, professor of economics and co-chairman of the South Side Development Study Group said he believes the issue has not had an opportunity to be studied carefully enough.
"Some people are concerned about an act on crime rates, which might be an issue to look into," Hyclak said. "Some people are concerned about the possibility that the proximity of the casino might produce gambling issues with Lehigh faculty and students. The evidence is not overwhelming for either side. This is why President Gast set up a study group to see what happened at other schools."
Lehigh students have mixed reactions. As a positive impact students feel the casino will increase local business and will also provide a source of entertainment outside of campus.
"The casino would provide more commerce to the businesses of Bethlehem and would increase the property value," Jake Gorelick, '09, said. "Also, people love to gamble so it would be a form of entertainment for people of age."
On the other hand, some Lehigh students are concerned about the kind of people who will come to the casino.
"While the proposed casino will draw many new faces to the Bethlehem area, we might not be attracting the type of people we want to bring into our community," James McBratney, '09, said. "Do we really want to surround ourselves with people that think it is OK to gamble away their hard earned money? No, that's not the kind of Bethlehem I want to live in."
