Gambling as a Community Development Quick Fix

Abstract

As small communities throughout the country felt the loss of federal programs and funding, four gold-mining towns in South Dakota and Colorado turned to the legalization of limited-stakes gambling as a means of economic revitalization. All four used the preservation of their historic Old West images to legitimate gaming, but differences in state legislation resulted in different patterns of development. In Deadwood, South Dakota, many small casinos were established, with most gaming tax revenues going toward the town's historic preservation. In Colorado, fewer but much larger casinos emerged, with the returns for historic preservation available to projects across the state, with the gambling communities of Cripple Creek, Central City, and Black Hawk benefiting little. Retail businesses were cannibalized as gambling became the dominant industry in all four towns. Resident populations and schools experienced little change; most of the change occurred in vehicular traffic, law enforcement, and the utilization of infrastructure.