Amid a decline in tourists: should Cologne embrace a casino?
North Rhine-Westphalia intends to establish a new casino in Cologne, with construction scheduled to commence in 2018 and completion set for 2021. The proposed location is Ottoplatz in Cologne-Deutz. The idea is to provide the city with a touch of global flair. Nonetheless, the primary confusion is whether there will be sufficient interested clients. There are only four casinos in NRW, which is unexpected given the high population density. The present casino figures from the state suggest a reduction in interest. Could the investment be doomed to fail?
Westspiel, the state-owned company in charge of the project, is already facing a budget surplus of 300,000 euros out of the initial plan of 23 million euros. While the extra funds are manageable, future costs before the commencement of construction may have a disastrous effect. This leads to associations with Hamburg's Elbphilharmonie concert hall and Berlin Airport, both of which had significant budget overruns. Although NRW faces the risk of a similar catastrophe, several factors would have to collide.
New statistics on the visitors to the state's casinos are sowing doubts regarding the project. NRW is home to four casinos, enabled by traditional legislation that allowed only a few health resorts to have these establishments. These include venues in Aachen, Bad Oeynhausen, Hohensyburg near Dortmund, and Duisburg. The casinos in Cologne would have a major competitor in Bad Neuenahr, Rhineland-Palatinate, creating doubts about the necessity of another casino.
Declining visitor numbers at the state's casinos
Contrary to popular belief, NRW only has four casinos, rooted in the historical regulation that restricted casinos to health resorts. The casinos are in Aachen, Bad Oeynhausen, Hohensyburg near Dortmund, and Duisburg. Out of these, casinos in Bad Oeynhausen and Hohensyburg have the highest turnover in Germany. However, for Colonians, the closest casino is Bad Neuenahr in Rhineland-Palatinate. The existence of a casino in Cologne may seem appealing, but recent statistics have raised concerns.
Visitor numbers in NRW's casinos exhibit a common decline. In 2015, there was a drop of 20,000 visitors or 4%. Despite this, there was an overall decline of up to 40% in the previous six years. To stay afloat, Westspiel casinos needed emergency measures. In 2014, the sale of two Andy Warhol artworks funded the balanced budget and facilitated renovations. In 2015, a liquidated risk fund saved the group with a revenue of 500,000 euros.
Trying to prevail through the crisis
The land-based casino sector faces intense competition. The Internet is intensifying pressure on conventional casinos across the board, not just in NRW. Customers now eschew high entrance fees and additional drink prices, in addition to the house edge. Once frequented by a million visitors annually, Casino Hohensyburg now attracts just 300,000.
It remains dubious whether the troubled Westspiel can alter this trend with a new major project. If the income from gambling does not meet expectations, the initiative has a more comprehensive concept. The facility is slated to include a parking garage, which would at least be crisis-proof.
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Source: www.onlinecasinosdeutschland.com
