City of Kenosha Delays Casino Vote Until Next Year

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Kenosha Mayor John Antaramain (D)

With a move that blindsided Democratic mayor John Antaramian, the Kenosha city council voted to delay the vote on the intergovernmental agreement until next year.

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A motion was made to defer the voting on the IGA and several aldermen spoke in favor of it. Mayor Antaramian soon realized that he did not have the votes to stop the delay. He got up during the meeting and whispered into Alderman David Bogdala’s ear who quickly asked for a recess.

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The council then took a 5-minute break and the mayor and Bodgala attempted to convince Alderman Ruffalo to change his mind on the deferral. This three-person meeting was done in secret and the public could not hear what was being said.

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About 30 seconds later, the mayor called the meeting back to order and scolded members of the council. He stated that there have been no secret meetings. He also said that he would not tolerate the Aldermen claiming that his administration violated any rules.

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The mayor, not wanting a vote on the delay to be a matter of record, pulled a unusual move and ask for a “unanimous consent” to delay the meeting.

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Kenosha County Eye reached out to County Executive Samantha Kerkman and County board chairman Gabe Nudo Monday evening to ask what their plan is for tomorrow’s County vote. Neither immediately responded.

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28 Responses

  1. Some of us are old enough to remember the promises Dairyland made. Supposed to be the goose that laid the golden egg.

    Still waiting for the Amtrak station.

    And the former Dairyland laid an egg (as did all of the other dog tracks in Wisconsin).

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  2. Too bad for the Mayor. Good for Kenosha. I wonder about the secret dirty deals that were part of the negotiations.

    Now these dirty deals are at risk. What can they be?

    I suspect that both the Mayor and City Administrator get lucrative perpetual “consulting” contracts. Maybe the Tribe also throws in an honorary degree from the College of the Menominee Nation for the City Administrator.

    What a deal!

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  3. A self preservation move. Aldermanic and County Board Candidates can start gathering signatures for their nomination papers December 1st. The deadline to turn them in is January 2nd.

    Time to vote these people out of office who believe this thing should be rammed through without full transparency and public presentations with questions and answers.

    A delay past that date so they can pull their heads out of their a$$ and take the pulse and see if they can ram it through ignoring the people they represent. A full slate of contested elections is in order here.

    I heard a candidate forum is being planned.

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    1. you are absolutely correct! I am sick of the city mismanagement and the lies from Antaramian and the others who push their liberal agenda without concern for the citizens who pay their salaries!

      1. Voting for Bagdala is giving Anaramian and Morrissey the keys to robbing the city and sweetheart deals. Was told months ago be careful with Bagdala he is not what you see and think we are getting! Sounds pretty accurate. What happened with Morrissey and college degree, needs to be looked at closer

        1. The matter of Morrissey’s fraudulent college degree is sordid indeed. Neither the mayor nor the city council lifted a finger to do anything about it. Morrissey conned the city by saying he had a college degree when he did not. Now we should trust him with the agreement with the tribe?

          This article has info about Morrissey’s fraudulent degree:
          https://kenoshacountyeye.com/2022/06/30/retired-fbi-special-agent-questions-kenosha-city-administrators-college-degree/

    2. The aldermen (especially Ruffolo and Bogdola) are hiding because they both should be voted out of office for supporting this casino in our neighborhood.

  4. Everyone needs to contact their aldermen and tell them that Kenosha does not need or want this casino! It leads to reduced property values, drug abuse, gambling addiction, prostitution and more crime than we already have. if we want to clean up the city and make it a desirable place to visit again, we need to vote AGAINST this casino.

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  5. Let me say. I’m not in favor of the casino or against. It doesn’t matter to me.
    I’ve been watching government meanings for a long time. (30 years)
    Negotiations cannot happen in the newspaper or in public. There was negotiations with Uline before they moved here? There was negotiations with Amazon before they moved here?
    There is and has been negotiations with Snap-on to keep jobs here? The answer is yes yes yes!!!
    When you do Union negotiations it’s done the same way? YES.
    This not rushed and or behind closed doors secret meetings is BS. The attorney for the Potawatomi are getting rich. Once you have an agreement then you bring it out to the public to review which the city and the county have done. I read the agreement on my phone last night. It is plain as day. This conspiracy theory is ridiculous.

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    1. I think you missed the point. The councilmen weren’t told anything at all and we’re denied when they asked. There’s a difference between publicizing negotiations and giving our elected officials at least SOME heads up and basic info.

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  6. I realize that the deal isn’t dead. BUT. Why does growth of big business and potential future projects scare people in SE Wisco? Business growth,Casinos and large box stores mean, economic growth, jobs/careers etc. people say it will bring crime and traffic and habitual gamblers.

    -Crime possibly but it will also allow for more LEO’s
    – Traffic? I can’t believe that is even a concern. If that’s a concern over local economic growth, oh well. Don’t like it, move to North were nothing happens.
    – And I can’t see where some people are concerned about habitual gamblers when there’s a bar on every corner, which promotes, habitual alcoholism and drinking and driving.
    – Tax credits, tax breaks is simple common sense business to Luer big business which will again, bring jobs , tourism and not to mention the benefits of the taxes they do have to pay to local and state government.

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    1. Have you ever considered that many people don’t want “growth”. They are tired of Chicago and Milwaukee encroaching on us from the north and south and we don’t want a big city. And it’s not like the money will be given back to the people. More revenue means more government and pet projects.

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    2. It will bring more crime, traffic congestion and many other problems to the area. Benefits? There are none.

      The land will be given away (non-taxable) and become part of a Nation (no longer part of Wisconsin). It can never be returned to us.

      We will have zero control over what happens on that land. Police can be told they’re not allowed to enter. They can serve alcohol 24/7 without consequence. They can create their own policies and laws. They do not have to abide by our laws.

      A casino will not create a lot of high paid jobs. They will ship in workers (in this case, from Florida) to live and work on the reservation land. Any outsiders hired will not get paid well or receive benefits. And they can fire you for any reason.

      What little they say they’ll give to the area in funds (such as the schools) is a very small amount compared to what they’re making overall…. and the cost they’ll create for the area. It will cost us more to have a casino here than what we’ll get out of it. And no, we cannot tell them to pay anything. They don’t have to… They are a separate nation.

      If you think your local leaders and politicians are promoting this for your best interests, you are wrong. They are all counting on special jobs, contracts and under the table payouts. If you don’t believe this, then demand that any of them involved swear off any connection to the casino later… They would never agree. Just like the last casino deal, they all have personal benefits already agreed upon for them. And it’s all allowed under the crooked management of the casino.

      There are plenty of jobs available right now in Kenosha County. And there are plenty of gambling places within a short drive of here. We do not need a casino.

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    3. Indian casinos don’t pay taxes. Plus, the land is forever lost to a tribe. Growth is not the concern; it is giving away our land and money to a Florida Indian tribe.

  7. Just like marijuana, I guess people in Kenosha think laws actually work 😂. Marijuana is going to be used the same amount whether the law passes or not. The only difference is smart states are reaping 20% in tax revenue while we give it to some cartel or crime organization. Laws are about as good as those “gun free zones”. Tax it all and let people choose what’s good/bad for themselves? #freedom.

    Places without casinos = organized crime/bookies/loan sharing/no tax revenue.

  8. Everyone knows Antaramian is a crook .
    He let our city burn because Evers told him to. He doesn’t give a shit about Kenosha.
    I was planning on voting for Bogdala for mayor, because I couldn’t stomach seeing Lydia Spottswood in that position . If Bogdala is in bed with Antaramian, that changes everything.

  9. In his statement, Antaramian is deflecting, “I will not tolerate” instead of telling the truth.
    People don’t trust “Zuckerbucks Antaramian”.

  10. I personally think the casino could be a good thing for Kenosha, but I certainly don’t endorse jumping the gun and ramming it down our throats.
    Doesn’t anyone remember Foxconn? The too-good-to-be-true promises by Scott Walker, Donald Trump, and Terry Gou? Anyone who questioned that process was shouted down and roundly condemned as anti-progress and anti-jobs. Nobody wanted common sense to cloud the stars in their eyes. Look how that turned out.
    Kenosha, do not repeat the mistakes of Racine County. Let the process run its course, answer all the taxpayers’ questions, and be truthful and transparent. I know that’s a tall order for some of our local politicians, but it’s the right way to proceed.

  11. Samantha Kerkman is for the casino too! The Casino should be a definite NO for Kenosha. We do not need one here. No to Kerkman and no to the casino!

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