(El Cerrito, CA) – Assemblywoman Loni Hancock (D-Berkeley/Richmond) will host a town hall hearing to provide information and solicit local input about the proposed Casino San Pablo Compact. The town hall is scheduled for Saturday, January 22 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. in the John Knox Theater for the Performing Arts at Contra Costa Community College in San Pablo.

This is the first local hearing since the Compact was unveiled by the Schwarzenegger Administration last August. The Compact, which was released two weeks before the close of the legislative session, originally called for a multi-story building with 5,000 slot machines. Even after the proposal was scaled back to 2,500 slot machines, it faced stiff opposition from legislators and the Administration was forced to abandon its effort to jam the proposal through the Legislature in the last days of the 2004 session.

Since August, opposition has grown to the proposed compact that would authorize for the first time, a Nevada-style gambling casino in an urban area. In December, Assemblymember Hancock surveyed her East Bay constituents and over 10,000 questionnaires were returned. Of those returned, 91.25% of the respondents oppose the expansion of Casino San Pablo. This comes on the heals of the decisive defeat of Proposition 68 and 70 in November, which would have authorized expansion of gambling all over the state.

Finally, U.S Senator Dianne Feinstein announced Thursday that she would introduce legislation to block the expansion of Casino San Pablo, telling the San Francisco Chronicle, “When people voted for these casinos, they weren’t told they were not going to be on Indian reservations, and people were led to believe that they would be smaller enterprises.”

For more information or directions, please call Hans Hemann at (510) 697-5760.

WHAT: Town Hall on the Casino San Pablo Compact

WHEN: Saturday, January 22, 2005, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

WHERE: The John Knox Theater for the Performing Arts
Contra Costa Community College
San Pablo
Entrance at El Portal Drive and Castro Street

WHO: Assemblymember Loni Hancock
Assemblymember Joe Canciamilla
Assemblymember Joe Nation
Local Elected Officials
Policy Experts
Community Members