hotel casino in orlando?

[bluewingzz]

anyone heard about a possible hotelcasino in otown?

[cwetteland]

anyone heard about a possible hotelcasino in otown?

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About 6 months or more ago, there were some articles about some either Seminole or Micasuki indians buying some land off 192 down near Kissimmee for a possible casino ... but that talk died out. I don't think you can build a casino if you're not an indian.

[cwetteland]

Micasuki indians

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That's kinda japanese looking ... try this "Miccosukee"

[bluewingzz]

About 6 months or more ago, there were some articles about some either Seminole or Micasuki indians buying some land off 192 down near Kissimmee for a possible casino ... but that talk died out.  I don't think you can build a casino if you're not an indian.

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i was wondering why hardrockcafe in tampa named seminole hotel casino. I think orlando need a casino to entertain the adult. All we have here are theme parks. thanks cwettland

[demon]

I really wouldn't want to see gambling in Orlando. It brings an seedy element to town.

[Tim3167]

I really wouldn't want to see gambling in Orlando. It brings an unseedy element to town.

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Sorry, I have to laugh a bit at this.

-First of all, wouldn't UNseedy actually be a good thing?

-How did the seedy element already in town get here?

-If the "seedy" element I saw in the Tampa casino is any indication, I'm not sure we have much to worry about other than the wait for early bird senior specials at our local restaraunts.

[prahaboheme]

I certianly wouldn't want the Nevada style in Florida, with gambling everywhere from casinos to supermarkets, to gas stations. But one in the area wouldn't hurt.

[bluewingzz]

I certianly wouldn't want the Nevada style in Florida, with gambling everywhere from casinos to supermarkets, to gas stations.  But one in the area wouldn't hurt.

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i agreed

[Orlandoguy24]

I was actually at the seminole in tampa this weekend. It was great, I highly recommend it.

[bobliocatt]

I love to see casino's in Florida, since we already have the lottery and church's sponser bingo. Both are forms of gambling. Plus from the casinos I've been too they're definately quality entertainment destinations that enhance the nightlife atmosphere around them.

I used to buy into the idea about casino attracting a bad element, but that all changed once I visited the Greektown Casino in Detroit. Its clean, well kept and has done nothing but attract new hotels, restaurants, and anchor the Greektown entertainment district, in what was once a decaying section of town. The new Seminole Hard Rock Casinos in Tampa and Hollywood, complete with several restaurants, bars & shops, only strengthen my opinion.

[bluewingzz]

I love to see casino's in Florida, since we already have the lottery and church's sponser bingo.  Both are forms of gambling.  Plus from the casinos I've been too they're definately quality entertainment destinations that enhance the nightlife atmosphere around them. 

I used to buy into the idea about casino attracting a bad element, but that all changed once I visited the Greektown Casino in Detroit.  Its clean, well kept and has done nothing but attract new hotels, restaurants, and anchor the Greektown entertainment district, in what was once a decaying section of town.  The new Seminole Hard Rock Casinos in Tampa and Hollywood, complete with several restaurants, bars & shops, only strengthen my opinion.

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I hope we'll have a similar one here in orlando, since orlando are the #1 tourist destination, we gotta have the entertainments for all ages.

[Aessotariq]

Ummm... are there any reservations in the Orlando area? My impression was that Indian/Native American casinos could only be built on reservations, the idea being that reservations are sovereign territory that aren't subject to state law, and that it's states that determine the legality of gambling within their borders.

[prahaboheme]

Native Americans tried to build one on Neptune Rd in Osceola County years back, but it faced serious resistance because it was across the street from a middle school, in a highly residential neighborhood, and zoned agricultural.

My impressions of casinos are like this (based on my Las Vegas trip over Thanksgiving): the casinos on the strip were great, beautiful hotels and lots of money floating around everywhere, brings in great shows and retail/restaurant, etc., but on the downside, you go .5 mile from the strip and things get rundown, there are shady developments everywhere, and literally every large scale residential project (on the scale of lets say, Hunters Creek or Metrowest) has its own casino. Not to mention neon galore. Gets a bit tiring.

[bobliocatt]

Las Vegas & Atlantic City are overboard. When built in moderation, these things can become assets.

[demon]

I certianly wouldn't want the Nevada style in Florida, with gambling everywhere from casinos to supermarkets, to gas stations.  But one in the area wouldn't hurt.

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What one area? Do you think Disney would let the opportunity to have gambling in their hotels pass them by? Do you think they built those big ballrooms on the first floor of all their hotels for barmitzhas? They're there in the hopes that one day they can put slots in them.

[prahaboheme]

Not one area, one in the area. Reread my post.

[prahaboheme]

What one area? Do you think Disney would let the opportunity to have gambling in their hotels pass them by? Do you think they built those big ballrooms on the first floor of all their hotels for barmitzhas? They're there in the hopes that one day they can put slots in them.

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They built them for conventions, and they certainly get booked!

[Jaybee]

Casinos are NOT good uses of land, and would NOT be a good thing in Orlando - they bring organized crime and corruption (pay-offs for the politicians). And yes, I've been involved in regulating casinos before. Outside of the glitz, they are not a something I'd want in my town.

[cwetteland]

They're there in the hopes that one day they can put slots in them.

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No way. That would kill their family business. I wouldn't want to take my kids to see Mickey and have to walk them by slots.

[bluewingzz]

I don't think big casinos will exist in orlando. But we might have 1 similar to tampa or hollywood in the future.

[bluewingzz]

Gambling on growth

Hard Rock Cafe hires a Vegas veteran as part of a strategy to expand its global reach in casinos.

By Jerry W. Jackson | Sentinel Staff Writer

Posted February 17, 2005

HARD ROCK CAFE INTERNATIONAL INC.

# Headquarters: Orlando.

# CEO: Hamish Dodds.

# New position: Vice president of casinos, Michael Soll

# Businesses: 122 Hard Rock Cafes in 41 countries, hotels, casinos, music memorabilia, merchandise, live music concerts and performance venues.

# Annual revenue: About $400 million.

# Parent company: Rank Group PLC, London.

Hard Rock Cafe International Inc. took another major step on the road to becoming a global player in casino gambling this week with the appointment of an industry expert from Las Vegas to the newly created position of vice president of casinos.

Michael Soll, 39, said Wednesday that he sees great potential for the Orlando-based entertainment giant's future in casinos, both domestically and overseas such as in the United Kingdom.

"You're going to see some exciting things from Hard Rock," said Soll, who for the past three years has been vice president of planning and development for Caesars Entertainment in Las Vegas.

Soll said Hard Rock's plans are in the formative stages, but the primary goal now is to develop a comprehensive strategy to expand the company's reach in casinos as an owner, investor and brand licenser to third-party operators.

"Casinos are not new to Hard Rock, but until now a lot of what has happened so far has been serendipitous. We want to get some real strategy around it, for increasing opportunities and to leverage the brand," Soll said.

A native of New Orleans, Soll previously worked in New York for Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, one of the nation's largest hotel and resort companies with a major presence in Orlando. Before that, he was an equity analyst following the gaming industry for Bear Stearns & Co., one of the country's best-known stock brokerages.

With his broad background in hotels, gambling and finances, Soll said he sees Hard Rock as particularly well positioned to grow in the field with hotels, casinos and the profitable Hard Rock Cafes, now in more than 40 countries.

Hard Rock's parent company, London-based Rank Group PLC, is a major player in European gaming, where deregulation efforts are under way to make casino operations there more closely resemble those in the United States. Hard Rock already has hotel-casinos in London and Manchester, England, and Rank Group officials have said in the past they see more opportunities for growth in the United Kingdom and elsewhere.

Soll said Wednesday that he sees plenty of potential closer to home, with the opening next summer of a Hard Rock licensed hotel and casino in Biloxi, Miss., where boat and barge-based gambling has taken hold in the past decade.

In Florida, Hard Rock has licensed the brand name to fly over two of the Seminole Tribe of Florida's new, multimillion dollar casinos, in Tampa and Hollywood. By licensing the brand, Hard Rock reaps high profit-margin income without the downside risks of equity ownership, a technique for leveraging the brand that Hard Rock CEO Hamish Dodds has said he particularly prefers.

Seminole casinos technically do not allow full-scale gambling in the style of Las Vegas or Biloxi, because of Florida's longstanding opposition. But the tribes have found ways to mimic the sights and feel of traditional casinos with slot machines and other games that pay significant pots.

Soll said he thinks Hard Rock has great potential to ink other Indian casino deals elsewhere throughout the country where high-stakes, Vegas-style gambling is allowed, and reap even larger profits. "That's going to be a very important segment for future growth," Soll said.

"In Florida, we're in pretty good shape, although that's not to say we might not work another deal here" for an Indian casino, Soll said. "But new and existing opportunities outside Florida are available because many tribes are not yet benefiting from a good brand name."

Soll, who is married and has two children, 4 and 2, has moved to Winter Park and said he finds it "quite a contrast from the desert" landscape of Nevada, where he lived for the past three years. "I love all the big trees. They remind me of my home in New Orleans," Soll said.

Jerry W. Jackson can be reached at [email protected] or 407-420-5721.

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/business/or...iness-headlines