Lights, money, action as slots open in Bangor

Staff photo by Herb Swanson

Dustin Gilmore, 18, of Newport, a casino porter, dusts some of the 475 slot machines at Hollywood Slots on Thursday in preparation for today's opening. Penn National spent $17 million transforming Miller's Restaurant into a slots parlor.

Staff photo by Herb Swanson

Hollywood Slots, located on Main Street in Bangor, is not what the harness-racing community had envisioned. The original concept was for a racino at the Bangor Raceway, but city officials had concerns about putting the parlor at the racetrack.

WAGERS SMALL AND LARGE

HOLLYWOOD SLOTS offers a range of betting options:

PENNY PINCHERS can mete their money out two pennies at a time at 43 machines accepting 2-cent bets.

PENN NATIONAL bets that many customers will spend a nickel per pull at 142 machines accepting 5-cent wagers.

FOR THE DIME-A-PULL gambler, 17 machines.

WILLING TO RISK A QUARTER A BET? You'll have 187 machines to choose from.

FIFTY-CENT BETTORS will have their pick of 24 machines.

THE DOLLAR-A-PULL GAMBLER can choose from 49 machines.

BIG SPENDERS, willing to plunk down $5 at a time, can do so at one of 13 machines.

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BANGOR — With the sound of bells and flash of lights, a new form of gambling will begin today when the state's first slot machines start to spin. Hollywood Slots at Bangor opens this morning with 475 machines. A red carpet and James Dean and Marilyn Monroe impersonators will welcome the first customers.

The opportunity for Mainers to play the slots follows more than two decades of debate in the state over casino gambling. And Bangor's experience is expected to fuel the ongoing battle over whether Maine should have more slots parlors.

The Passamaquoddy Tribe is working to open a racino in Washington County, and several proposals have been made in southern Maine in the past few years.

"People are going to be looking to see how this works out here," said Bangor City Manager Edward Barrett.

City leaders are celebrating the opening of the slots parlor in a former buffet restaurant on Main Street. They have worked for two years to get the slots operating, ever since voters approved the machines in a local and statewide referendum.

Their hope is the machines will help stimulate the city's economy and make it more of a tourist destination. A portion of the slot revenues will pay to replace the Bangor Civic Center and Auditorium.

Hollywood Slots is only opening a temporary parlor. Its owner, Penn National Gaming, plans to level two nearby hotels and replace them with a $71 million building that would hold up to 1,500 slots. It would open in 2007.

"This will enhance the tourism business faster than anything we could have thought of," said Rep. Patricia Blanchette, D-Bangor. "There is a reason for people to come and spend time in Bangor."

Assuming a permanent operation of 1,500 slots, the state estimates the casino would have a net income of about $100 million annually. The operator would keep roughly $61 million and the remaining $39 million would be dispersed by the state to various funds for harness racing, scholarships and other programs.

With the opening of Hollywood Slots, Maine is joining about half of U.S. states that have some form of electronic gambling such as slots or video lottery terminals, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.

The slots' debut today has the attention of some residents. Amy Cyr, who lives near the parlor, plans to have a party tonight at her home for the opening. It will culminate with a trip to the parlor.

Other Bangor residents are less interested. Robert Osgood, who owns an electrical company in the city, doesn't see himself going to the parlor. He said he would rather bet on horses occasionally, because unlike slots, there is some skill involved.

Penn National is focusing on attracting Mainers to its new attraction. The company is advertising in most of the state's cities, including Portland, Lewiston and Augusta.

Those visiting the parlor can bet from 2 cents to $5 on machines like "Texas Tea" and "Lucky Larry's Lobstermania." Hollywood Slots serves food and alcohol. Rules forbid anyone under 21 from entering the parlor.

Each machine is expected to take in an estimated $1,500 a day. The machines will return 87 percent to 95 percent to players, depending on the game, said Robert Welch, executive director of the Maine Gambling Control Board.

The parlor and the proposed permanent facility a few blocks away are different from what people in the harness-racing community envisioned. The original concept was a so-called racino with the slots located at Bangor Raceway, which is close to both sites.

Those in harness racing saw the machines as a way to draw new fans to their struggling sport. But city officials had concerns about putting the parlor at the racetrack. They say it could cause parking problems for the auditorium and convention center during construction. A racino also would require the Bangor State Fair to relocate from the raceway.

Although it may not get new fans from slot players, harness racing will see an influx of cash. Racing purses, agricultural fairs and Scarborough Downs, the state's other commercial track, will get part of the slots revenue.

"It is enough to keep us feeding the horses every night and morning," said Bill Childs, a longtime horse owner and breeder with a farm in Westbrook.

The state will get some of the slot revenues to regulate the parlor and fund college scholarships and health care.

Programs for problem gambling also will get some of the state money. Groups like the Maine Council on Problem Gambling have started training counselors on how to help people who struggle with gambling.

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