The City of Ottawa recently hosted a special event in the Jim Durrell Recreation Centre to honour the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation for its continued support for numerous projects in the city. Every year, the city bags more than CA$5.5 million for being a casino host community and the money goes to projects such as the rink renovations at the Jim Peplinski Arena.
Via the Municipality Contribution Agreement, the Crown corporation shares a portion of its slot and table game revenue with the host community. In Ottawa’s case, the city gains revenue for hosting Rideau Carleton Casino, Future Hard Rock. Allocations are based on a consistent formula applied to all casinos, calculated on a graduated scale at each hosting site.
Over CA$100M to This Day
Since the introduction of slot games at the local casino, the city has now received nearly CA$100 million in non-tax gaming revenue from OLG. A percentage of the funding for the fiscal 2022-23 was put into the recreation infrastructure projects, such as playgrounds, community centres and arenas. The Jim Durrell Recreation Centre was also revamped.
Some other arenas and venues that benefited from the gambling funds include the Bell Arena, the Bob MacQuarrie-Orléans Recreation Complex, the CardelRec Recreation Complex, the Cavanagh Sensplex Arena, the Dovercourt Recreation Centre, the Fred G. Barrett Arena, the Lois Kemp Arena, the Navan Memorial Centre, the Pinecrest Recreation Complex, the Richmond Arena and others.
At the celebration event, Mayor of Ottawa, Mark Sutcliffe, remarked the investment in recreational facilities and community projects, enhances community pride, while also fostering a sense of ownership. He added that the funds from the Crown agency will continue to flow into coffers and help upgrade, support, and enhance venues like the Jim Durrell Recreation Centre and many others.
OLG’s Senior Municipal Relations Manager, Kathleen Devine, said the Crown is proud to be a key partner in Ottawa, and reminded that every year, 100% of OLG’s profits are reinvested into Ontario. The funds support numerous projects from crucial infrastructure to important local programs and community festivals, and when Ontarians play at OLG casino they play for Ontario.
Other Communities also Celebrate OLG
Niagara Falls which is home to two of the most profitable casinos in the province – Fallsview Casino Resort and Niagara Falls Casino Resort also recently celebrated a massive casino revenue milestone. Since the launch of the first casino, the city now marked CA$200 million in non-tax gaming proceeds which has supported numerous local projects and initiatives.
Meanwhile, in September 2023, the Town of Gananoque and the Township of Leeds and the Thousand Islands hosted an invitation-only garden party in Town Hall Square, Gananoque to honour the OLG for its gambling contributions. The town and the township benefit from Shorelines Casino Thousand Islands located at 380 ON-2, Gananoque, ON K7G 2V4.
Source: “OLG’s continued community support for recreation facility projects” Ottawa.ca, November 20, 2023
