The prospects for an IR bid from the Japanese city of Yokohama remain clouded following a hectic month in which both pro- and anti-casino groups ramped up their campaigning.
Yukio Fujiki, Chairman of the Yokohama Port Transportation Association which consists of 244 port operators based in Yokohama’s Yamashita Pier, announced on 15 May the establishment of the new Yokohama Port Resort Association, which will focus on developing a MICE facility without a casino.
The Yokohama Harbor Resort Association has been in opposition to any IR that includes casino space, but has now indicated its opinion that profit can be found in a MICE facility without a casino element.
On the other hand, the Yokohama Chamber of Commerce expressed at a press conference on 23 May that they will establish a promotional council for attracting an IR during 2019. President Takashi Ueno expressed his positive view of IRs, stating, “It is an extremely important policy in order to support Yokohama’s economic development.”
Yokohama city mayor, Fumiko Hayashi, stated in a recent interview, “We would like everyone to really think hard together to come up with a growth strategy suitable for Yokohama,” although she refused to comment directly when asked about an IR.
In a press conference on 15 May, she noted that any such facility would be “extremely difficult without a casino.”
The Japanese government last week revealed that an announcement on the Fundamental Policy for integrated resort facilities including casinos would be postponed until after the upper house summer elections.
Yokohama, a potentially lucrative location for an IR, remains in a state of confusion with such disparate opinions floating around.
The question now is whether the city will have come to a decision by the time the government’s Fundamental Policy is announced after the summer.
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