Niagara Falls looks to get casino cash

NIAGARA FALLS, N.Y. (WIVB) - It was supposed to be a jackpot for Niagara Falls, but the honeymoon's over between New York State and the Senecas - and a pile of overdue casino cash is stuck in the middle.

The Niagara Falls City Council voted Monday night to form a volunteer committee of three whose mission will be to put pressure on Albany to reach some sort of middle ground with the Seneca Nation to get the casino revenue flowing again.

The Senecas have been holding the state' and localities' share of casino profits in escrow for three years, claiming the state broke its contract by allowing Hamburg Casino and others to directly compete with Seneca casinos. For Niagara Falls and its school system, about $60 million in casino revenue is being held up.

Just recently, the city had to lay off a handful of coordinators who were each being paid about $12,000 a year to help promote the city's business districts.

Councilmember Glen Choolokian said, "No one knows the community better than the business people in there. That's who these coordinators were. So a lot of small programs, roads, basic necessities for everyday life, basic services - we're a depressed area and we have to try to improve our necessities, but without the money, it's hard."

Council Chairman Samual Fruscione said, "Well, the point is, there are some people who live in the City of Niagara Falls who have access to the governor, so we need to get some of those people involved in the process because right now it appears the mayor doesn't have access to the governor. The council is about to attempt to have access, so if you don't have access you're going to have nothing done, so some people in the community can reach out to the governor and help us in our crusade."

Seneca leaders have said in the past they would pay casino revenue directly to localities like Niagara Falls and Salamanca if they could, but the way the compact is structured, the revenue has to go through the state first.