Speaking to the St. Clair County Mayors’ Association Tuesday morning, McKay addressed his city’s electronic bingo ordinance, recently found unconstitutional by the Alabama Supreme Court. The issue, he says, is about the city’s finances, and fairness.
“It’s hard to figure out if I’m an ally of Gov. (Bob) Riley or not,” McKay said. “I voted for him two times. Right now, I’m an ally, because the legislature’s fixing to pass an amendment starting tomorrow that’s going to give everybody the bingo, except St. Clair County.”
Based on McKay’s numbers from the 10 days in which electronic bingo was played in Ashville (in June, before the Supreme Court issued a stay), the electronic bingo hall at the city’s American Legion would have made roughly $13 million, to date. More than $7 million of that could have gone to the county schools and various charities.
“That would’ve saved (Ashville),” the mayor said. “And, if it went to Pell City and they’d opened one there and Moody and these other people that wanted it, the county would’ve been blessed.”
Currently, the Legislature is preparing to debate a bingo bill for the state. According to McKay, if passed, the bill would benefit other parts of the state but not St. Clair.
“Etowah’s going to get a site, right above Steele,” he said. “There will be two in District 6 (Birmingham) – one at the racetrack, one downtown where the Dome is.
“Milton McGregor is still calling shots about where they go; there will be one in Gadsden, right above Steele; two in Birmingham; Greenetrack will stay open; Macon County, Houston County – they don’t even want Calhoun to have it. They’re counting votes down there; the only way they’re gonna pass this is if they get enough votes, and they claim they got them.”
Argo mayor Paul Jennings, whose town also passed a bingo ordinance after much debate, told the crowd he wished the county could work together.
“The thing that bothers me the most about this – it split us all up when we ought to be united,” he said. “We’ve got the Governor on one side; we’ve McGregor; we’ve got this, we’ve got poor little St. Clair County – part of us wanted it, parts didn’t.
“Nobody said one word about this Wind Creek sitting down here at Atmore. Nobody. All the media, everything else has been talked about. All we’re shutting down is Alabamians providing jobs, providing some kind of income to the state.
“It’s just one of those things, whatever we say, we look wrong. But it doesn’t look fair to the people. Why don’t we unite and help each other, instead of fighting each other all the time?”
McKay added that he doesn’t think any of the talk will matter.
“This issue, I don’t think it’s going to make one iota of difference to St. Clair County right at this point, and Ashville,” he said. “It’s too late now because I think they have enough votes in the Legislature possibly.
“Hopefully you won’t hear anymore out of me about this.”
One can only hope. I guess it was pretty disappointing that you won't be able to run down there and do the Larry Langford shuffle to the right machine at the right time.
Now, how about going about running Ashville instead of trying to line your pockets? Oh wait, nevermind. You said only bingo could save Ashville. I bet you didn't say that when you were trying to get elected.