(WXYZ) - He was the man who helped bring casinos to Detroit, so why is former Detroit Mayor Dennis Archer now working to bring gaming to Ohio? And Archer isn’t the only Detroit booster who’s looking to bring competition to Motown’s three casinos.
Three high profile Detroiters are pushing to open four casinos in Ohio, including one that’s not far from Detroit, in Toledo. And that could mean major competition for the gaming dollars that our budget-strapped city relies on.
Dennis Archer, Dan Gilbert, and Matt Cullen may be high-profile supporters of Detroit, but right now they are using their clout to try to bring casino gaming to Ohio.
TV Ad: Before we write a monopoly into our constitution, shouldn’t we know who will profit from Ohio’s gambling dollars?
Attack ads are ruling the airwaves in our neighbor state to the south.
TV Ad: They say we should keep Ohio gambling money in Ohio. But who’s really getting the money? Dan Gilbert…
Gilbert is the CEO of Livonia-based Quicken Loans, Inc. While he lives in Michigan, and is moving the Quicken headquarters to the Compuware Building in Detroit, Gilbert is also the owner of the NBA's Cleveland Cavaliers, and he’s a prominent businessman in Ohio.
Campaign records show that Gilbert has spent $15.4 million to try to convince Ohio voters to change their constitution to allow four casinos to open.
He even started something called the Ohio Venture Jobs and Growth LLC, which shares the same Livonia address as Quicken-Loans.
Gilbert’s go-to guy on the Ohio Casino effort is former GM Executive Matt Cullen. Cullen now works for Gilbert, and he’s the chair of the executive committee of the Michigan Economic Development Corporation.
TV Ad: Who else? Political insiders.
And the mayor who helped the casinos open in Detroit is now doing the same thing south of the border, which could draw gaming dollars that benefit Detroit to Ohio.
This was Dennis Archer in 1997:
Dennis Archer/Detroit Mayor/1997: There is great possibility that the new gaming markets will open up in other parts of the Midwest, such as Chicago, Illinois, or Cleveland, Ohio, or on the east coast and cities like New York. Recognizing this, and since we are building first, we must make sure that our casinos are of enduring quality that can withstand competition from these new potential markets.
Now Archer is the competition that he warned Detroiters about.
A Quicken Loans spokeswoman tells the Action News Investigators that Dennis Archer is a consultant and advisor to Rock Ventures, which is Gilbert’s company that’s teaming up with Penn National Gaming. If Ohio’s Issue 3 passes, Archer will have the chance to be an investor in two casinos that Gilbert plans to operate in Cleveland and Cincinnati.
Penn National will operate the Toledo and Columbus casinos.
Adolph Mongo/Detroit Political Consultant: He’s Benedict Arnold. There’s no question.
Detroit political consultant Adolph Mongo says Archer should be using his star power to help Detroit.
Adolph Mongo/Detroit Political Consultant: What bothers me is that we got a former mayor of this city, a city that’s on the verge of going under, and he’s somewhere else, trying to promote an industry that’s going to save Cleveland and Ohio itself? Shame on Dennis Archer!
Casino experts tell the Investigators that 20 percent of the people who get those players loyalty club cards for the Detroit casinos are not from Michigan, and that a Toledo casino would definitely draw gaming dollars from places like Monroe and Washtenaw counties.
As for Dan Gilbert, his spokeswoman gave us a written statement saying Gilbert is still dedicated to Detroit, but “Dan believes strongly in contributing and becoming involved in all the cities and states in which he does business.”
Action News tried several times to talk with Dennis Archer about his activities in Ohio, but he said he’s just too busy today to try to talk about this. The Ohio vote on the casino initiative takes place on Tuesday.
