BIDDEFORD — Without new revenue, cuts to the Biddeford Fire Department and services to the city will need to be made, said a representative from the Biddeford Career Firefighters Union, Local 3107. That’s why, he said, the union is supporting the referendum question this November to allow a racino in Biddeford.
In a 4-1 vote, the executive board of the union, which represents 40 firefighters, approved supporting the racino referendum, said union Vice President and Biddeford firefighter Tim Sevigny.
“We are taking a public position today on the proposed Biddeford Downs racino,” he said. “For us, it’s a simple matter of economics.”
Developers of the proposed Biddeford Downs, which would include a harness racetrack with an associated slot machine facility and a hotel and entertainment complex, say the project would bring an additional $5 million to city coffers.
Proponents are expecting that the money and the promise of bringing an estimated 500 jobs paying an average of $30,000 per year, will convince Biddeford residents to vote yes for the racino on the November ballot.
Representatives of Scarborough Downs and Ocean Properties LTD, the developers of the project, said it will cost approximately $125 million. They are proposing to build it on a 71-acre city-owned parcel along the Andrews Road.
Without the new revenue from the racino, said Sevigny, higher taxes and/or cuts to services would be inevitable.
“We have aging fire apparatus and aging equipment with costly repairs that need to be replaced in the near future,” he said. “Where is the money going to come for that?”
If cuts to the city and fire department budgets are made because of a lack of funding, said Sevigny, the department “won’t be able provide services to the citizens we have right now.”
“We provide a great service to the city, and we would hate to lose it,” he said.
In addition, said Sevigny, he spoke with firefighters in the Bangor Fire Department and they told him there was no significant impact in services resulting from Hollywood Slots, the racino in Bangor.
“This (the racino) is needed for public safety,” said Mayor Joanne Twomey, one of the project’s biggest cheerleaders.
We’re “looking at service cuts because of the budget situation,” she said. “I can’t continue to raise taxes.”
There will be a public hearing on the racino on Monday at 6 p.m. at City Council chambers.
— Staff Writer Dina Mendros can be contacted at 282-1535, Ext. 324 or dmendros@journaltribune.com.
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