PETERBOROUGH is vying with 40 other areas to build a multi-million pound casino.
Peterborough City Council has officially entered the race to build one of just 16 casinos across the country which will be allowed under new gambling laws.
The council decided not to bid for a super Las Vegas-style casino, but wants to build one o
f either the eight 1,500 sq m "large" casinos or eight 750 sq m "small" venues which the Government plans to allow over the next few years.
The Casino Advisory Panel is now sifting through the pile of applications before it will announce a short-list of top contenders.
City council cabinet member for environmental services Cllr John Peach today said a casino would boost the local economy by £3.7 million per year and create 400 new jobs.
Cllr Peach said: "We've thought long and hard about making this bid. It's not a quick or instant decision. We've taken time to form a thorough opinion and, on balance, we thought it would be advantageous for Peterborough to have a casino.
"We have not made a bid for the 5,000 sq m super-casino, we have opted for the large casino of 1,500 sq m.
"What we aim to do, if we are successful with this bid, is to incorporate the development into the renovation of Peterborough.
Ideally, it will be part of a complex that will include a hotel, business conference centre, sports facilities etc," he added.
"We don't envisage it just being a stand-alone casino. We do not want, and do not foresee, Peterborough becoming a gambling capital. This is part of our investment in the development of the city.
"It will be a catalyst that attracts more industry to the area."
Now the city council will have to wait up to eight weeks to find out whether Peterborough has made the final short-list.
Chairman of the Casino Advisory Panel, professor Stephen Crow, said: "These proposals represent a lot of hard work by the people that have prepared them, and, very often, a lot of difficult decision making also.
They all deserve nothing less than fair and thorough examination.
"We expect that this process will last at least six to eight weeks and would ask for forbearance during this initial evaluation period."
The Casino Advisory Panel wants the casinos to help areas in need of regeneration.
Other areas bidding for the large and small casinos include Milton Keynes, Leicester and Luton.
