Arkansas gambling expansion plans are all the hype at the moment and they appear to be here to stay as it was recently confirmed. Support towards the idea of a constitutional amendment which could give green light to four casino venues in the state has received more signatures from residents, elevating the overall number with some 43,952 unique signatures.
The additional time introduced by the authorities for the signature collection in support of the potentially beneficial idea has proved to give excellent results so far, as the overall number of supporters voicing their opinion has surged. Almost a month ago the group supporting the idea, Driving Arkansas Forward, demanded a 30-day deadline extension which to give them more physical time to gather signatures throughout the state. Following the nod of authorities, the deadline was set to 24th August, granting canvassers with a more realistic time frame to work with.
Over the span of the past four weeks people backing the proposed project which would see Arkansas Constitution being amended. Back at the very beginning of consideration, the group appointed some 84,859 as the goal number of signatures. A month ago this figure has managed to reach 94,880, but upon further examination, it turned out that only 70,054 signature passed the certification of the authorities making up for an insufficient number.
Now as a result of the added time for signature gathering, the group managed to file in additional 43,952 signatures further elevating the overall number of people willing to see a wider array of gambling offerings. Among the plans revealed for the future development of the field is the highly valued tax question which would see a large amount of cash allocated to the community and reinvested in the improvement of roads throughout the state and highways redevelopment. There are also other projects considered at the moment, which would be revealed in the upcoming months, but they all have Arkansas’ best interest at heart.
Gamblign Expansion to Bring State Roads Improvement
Chairman of the group collecting signatures is Don Tilton, who is linked to Indian tribes to the liking of Quapaw Tribe. It should be taken into account that Native Americans have been demonstrating their love to the project for quite some time now and ever since the beginning of consideration of gambling expansion, more than $2 million has been invested.
According to the latest data, the Cherokee Nation Businesses and Downstream Development Authority of the Quapaw Tribe have poured some $1 million over July only in order to boost the group supporting the change and the mandatory promotional campaign coming with it. This amount of money adds up to the previous investment and amounts to more than $2 million. According to the CEO of the Oklahoma-based holding, Shawn Slaton, this move is striving to secure the tribal job positions in Arkansas for people of the Cherokee Nation.
Upcoming years could see more of them being employed in the state and they have been secured in a way through this heavy windfall. Now that the approximately 137,000 signatures have been turned in, the possibility of November Ballot including a casino expansion question is more than likely on a state level. Nate Steel, Attorney representing the group, stated that there should be more than 100,000 valid supporters once the review is concluded.
Driving Arkansas Forward, the group which collects signatures for a constitutional amendment on a state level confidently progresses ahead with its goal to bring a change to the local field and elevate the player experience. It is not a secret to anyone that supporters across the four counties are willing to welcome a new casino venue which has the potential to bring more and improve the economic state of the region.
With the help of this amendment as many as two currently operating locations – Oaklawn Park in Hot Springs and Southland Park Gaming and Racing in West Memphis would witness expanded list of gambling activities. In addition to these efforts, another parallel signature collection was in progress overseen by Citizens for a Better Pope County.
The end game for them brought almost 5,700 unique supporters of introducing a second question to November’s ballot. It is going to seek the opinion of the community about whether or not a casino venue is welcome in the area and 6th August was the deadline for this effort. At the moment the data is being evaluated by the authorities.
