The president of the Seneca Nation of Indians said Wednesday that he’s looking for a “fair, new” gaming compact with the state of New York.
When asked to elaborate following a press conference outside Seneca Niagara Casino in Niagara Falls, Seneca Nation President Matthew Pagels said the gaming landscape has changed “drastically” in the 20 years since the Seneca Nation obtained exclusive rights from the state to operate three casinos in Western New York.
Pagels cited an expansion of casinos in New York outside of the Nation’s exclusivity territory as having an impact on operations at the Seneca Niagara, Buffalo Creek and Seneca Allegany casinos. He mentioned both the Del Lago Resort & Casino in the Finger Lakes region and Tioga Downs Casino Resort, located in Nichols, New York, about halfway between Binghamton and Elmira, as two newer casinos that were opened with state lawmakers’ approval in recent years.
Pagels also noted the increased availability of video lottery terminals, commonly known as VTLs, at other state-sanctioned gaming facilities often referred to as “racinos.” Such properties would include Batavia Downs race track in Batavia.
“That’s pulling from our market,” Pagels said of New York’s expanded casino business.
Seneca Nation spokesperson Phil Pantano said his research shows there were a total of 10 casino across New York, the states of Connecticut, West Virginia, Rhode Island and the province of Ontario in Canada when Seneca Niagara Casino opened in 2002.
Today, Pantano said, there are more than 50 casinos across New York, Massachusetts, Ohio, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Connecticut, West Virginia and Ontario.
“The landscape has exploded,” Pantano said.
A rise in online gaming, the expansion of which has been embraced by state lawmakers in Albany in recent years, has also impacted the Seneca Nation’s gaming operation, according to Pagels.
“We’ve definitely seen an impact on brick-and-mortar sites,” Pagels said.
Under the current compact, the Nation turns over 25 percent of its slot machine and video lottery terminal proceeds to the state, which in turn provides 25 percent of the revenue to host communities, including Niagara Falls, Buffalo and Salamanca.
In various media reports last year, Pagels described the 25 percent revenue sharing figure as far too high and unrealistically high.
On Wednesday, he acknowledged that what the Nation agreed to under the current compact has, like the gaming business, “materially changed.” Pagels stopped short of saying whether the Nation would enter negotiations expecting to pay less to the state under a new gaming agreement.
“It’s a negotiation process,”he said. “To say we’re expecting anything is too early.”
The current compact is set to expire in December 2023. Pagels said the Nation has met with representatives from the state to discuss a potential schedule for talks but no details have been discussed yet.
When asked how he felt generally about entering into negotiations, Pagels had an upbeat tone, repeatedly using the word “optimistic.”
“We’re as optimistic as we can be,” he said. “There’s no looking back.”
Pagels addressed members of the media following a press conference outside Seneca Niagara Casino where he joined other representatives from the Seneca Nation in marking the 20th anniversary of the signing of the current compact, which became official on Aug. 18, 2002.
During the press conference, Seneca leaders, casino employees and supporters discussed the impact of the Nation’s casinos on the region’s economy over the past two decades.
Seneca officials noted that the Nation’s three casinos employ more than 3,000 workers across the region, including roughly 1,000 in Niagara County.
They also said the Nation’s gaming operations have had a total economic impact across Western New York of more than $1.7 million, when expenses tied to construction, vendors and other aspects of the gaming business are factored in.
“Starting a gaming business was a bold move by the Seneca Nation,” Pagels said. “Some might say it was a gamble, but it has clearly paid off.”
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