FREEPORT (AP) – Retailer L.L. Bean announced Friday it would contribute money to fight a proposed $650 million gambling casino in southern Maine, saying the project’s promised revenues do not justify significant economic costs.
A statewide referendum on the proposed casino, which would be run by the Penobscot and Passamaquoddy tribes, is scheduled for the November ballot.
A spokesman for Freeport-based L.L. Bean said a Las Vegas-style casino stands in contrast with Maine’s image as a corruption-free state with low crime and rugged natural beauty.
“Maine is one of the few states in the nation that enjoys a positive and recognizable ‘brand identity,”‘ said Rich Donaldson. “Casino gambling on the scale that is being proposed here stands in stark contrast to these values.”
The 91-year-old privately held firm cited studies showing a casino would increase crime, bankruptcies and other social problems, and economic costs would be passed along to Maine communities.
L.L Bean chairman Leon Gorman and his relatives have been among the biggest contributors to Casinos No, a political action committee that opposes the tribes’ proposal.
AP-ES-04-18-03 1757EDT
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