“Lipetsk Las Vegas” will appear on the bank of Matyrski storage pond
A gambling complex may be open on the grounds of the former “Volna” camp on the bank of Matyrski storage pond in Lipetsk region, reported the “Lipetsk News” referring to Lipetsk Vice-Mayor Ivan Koshelev. Effective from January 1st, the federal law allows regional authorities to close casinos and slot halls or relocate them away from residential areas till July 1st, 2007. Gaming business will operate till July 1st, 2009, in those constituent territories that will not do it.
Encouraged by the federal authorities` support, deputies of Lipetsk City Council addressed Governor Oleg Korolev and their regional colleagues a request to ban gaming business in the region. But the regional authorities decided not to be in a hurry – extreme measures taken, the regional budget will miss 88mln rubles of tax revenues, and in addition about 15mln will be lost by municipalities.
The Lipetsk authorities believe that relocating legal gambling to the city outskirts will make it harder to access for socially dependent players with low income, retain tax revenues for budgets, give casino owners a chance to diversify their business in the redecorated “Volna” holiday hotel after July 1st, 2009, when all gambling facilities within Russia will be closed (but for the four gaming zones – as IA REGNUM has previously informed, they were created on the territories of Altay, Primorie, Kaliningrad, Krasnodar and Rostov regions).
IA REGNUM