Miami Seaside Mayor, Enterprise Proprietor, Say No to Florida Playing – WSVN 7News | Miami Information, Climate, Sports activities

By Marlan McCarthy On May 18, 2021

MIAMI BEACH, FLA. (WSVN) – The Mayor of Miami Beach and other business owners said they don’t want gambling in Florida as Tallahassee lawmakers hold a special session to discuss the pact reached between the state and the Seminole tribe.

Last week Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed a tentative new contract with the Seminole tribe to expand Seminole land gambling and enable sports betting, but Tallahassee lawmakers must ratify the 30-year deal.

However, some, like Miami Beach Mayor Dan Gelber, have resisted the state, saying voters decided the matter in 2018.

“Florida state residents said, very simply and loudly, to Florida lawmakers, ‘We don’t want you to bring gambling into our backyard. We don’t want you to put it in our phones. We want to have a say, ”said Gelber.

Other business owners joined the mayor on Monday as state lawmakers debated whether or not to expand gambling and allow sports betting.

“This is not a partisan issue,” said Armando Codina of Codina Partners. “This is not a Republican or Democratic issue. This is a problem with my grandchildren. “

Critics argued that the brokered deal would violate Amendment 3 of the Florida Constitution. It gives the voters the final say in expanding casino gambling.

“We don’t think Florida lawmakers should expand gambling in ways that are inconsistent with the Florida Constitution,” Gelber said.

Officials said the pact would raise $ 2.5 billion and create thousands of jobs in its first five years.

“The money we make from our casinos is life changing from an education and health perspective,” said Marcellus Osceola Jr. of the Seminole Tribe of Florida.

The Seminones are allowed to offer sports betting in their South Florida casinos, but not until October. You could also introduce craps and roulette at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Hollywood. The deal would also allow the tribe to add three additional facilities within its Hollywood reservation.

“No new casinos will appear in Miami Beach or Fort Lauderdale Beach,” said MP Chip LaMarca. “You won’t see that. That would have to go to the voters, something like that. “

However, it seems that there is a disagreement in the details. Legislators have already made changes to the agreement, and more are expected in the coming days.

“Since when do the votes of the voters stop counting? How long have they stopped playing? They are important and we voted no, ”said Joe’s stone crab owner Steve Sawitz. “As a restaurant owner, as a business owner, and as a resident of my beloved Miami Beach, I don’t want it here.”

The original contract between the Seminole tribe and the state expired in 2015. Several efforts have been made to get a new treaty approved, but these attempts have failed.

It remains unclear whether proponents of the pact in Florida legislature have enough votes to ratify the agreement.

Meanwhile, representatives of several anti-gambling organizations, including Braman Motors in Miami, said they will take this fight to court if the deal is incorporated into law.