The Johnston Rotary Club will be meeting at the Johnston Community Schools, Administration Building on Tuesday, May 28th.  The builidng is located at 5608 Merle Hay Road in Johnston, IA.   

Please make a note of this change in venue.

The Johnston Rotary will be back at the Hyperion Field Club on Tuesday, June 4th.

Thank you

A group of Johnston Rotarians installed new benches and picnic tables at Youth Homes of Iowa in Johnston on Saturday May 11th.  The outdoor items were purchases with funds raised through the 2012 Rotary BBQ and with a matching grant from Rotary District 6000.  The Rotarians that assisted in the installation were: Ken Andresen, Bob Bisenius, Mark Zirkelbach, Jack Gray, Steve Grasso, Dennis Dietz, Allen Meyer. 

These guys were also assisted by some of the Youth Home residence who pitched in to help assembly the outdoor furniture.  The project included concrete pads which were constructed by a former resident of the Youth Homes who now has a concrete construction business.  Ace Hardware of Johnston provided use of an emergency generator. furnished concrete anchors and drill bits to complete the installation.

Annually the Johnston Rotary Club conducts the BBQ to raise funds to be used on locate projects.  In the past proceeds from this annual fundraiser have gone to support the Teddy Bear Project for youth of deployed Iowa National Guard Troops and the Gold Star Museum.

For more picture, go the the Photo Album on this web site.

Brian Ohorilko, Administrator of the Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission spoke at the May 14^th Johnston Rotary Club breakfast.  His background includes 12 years in the industry and is currently serving a 4-year term with the commission.  In his role, he ensures each facility is complying with the Iowa gaming laws and has 50-75 employees assigned across the state to assist him.

Brian provided some background on Iowa’s racing and gaming.  Highlights were:

1984 - The first gaming law was passed, which provided racing licenses for Prairie Meadows, Waterloo, and Dubuque.

1989 - A law was passed to have simulcasting  and gaming licenses on riverboats

1994 – Slot machines were authorized at race tracks, with the money being used to supplement racing purses.  Loss limits were also established in some locations

2004 – Riverboats could move off water and onto land, but the gaming floor still needed to be over water

2007 – Water requirement lifted

There are 18 facilities in Iowa, including 15 gambling structures, 3 race tracks, and 3 tribal casinos (the commission does not have authority over tribal casinos).

The Governor appoints 5 commission members and no more than 3 can be from the same political party.  The commission holds monthly meetings that focus on approvals of contracts (with an emphasis on Iowa vendors) and code violations.  When a new facility is being considered, a referendum must be passed in that respective community before it is discussed with the commission. 

The commission staff consists of 4 types of classifications. They are:  Gaming agents, State Stewards, State veterinarians and Licensing Staff.

The tax rate in Iowa is 22% for gambling and 24% for race tracks, which is about in the middle across the states.  In 2012, Iowa paid $314M in gaming taxes (Pennsylvania was the highest).  As for revenue generation, the Horseshoe casino in Council Bluffs is tops at $204M.  Emmetsburg is the lowest at $30M.  In 2012, the commission was able to distribute $41M to non-profit organizations.

There is no significant legislation in 2013, however, they are discussing a decrease in DCI agents assigned to casinos.  As for current events, Brian mentioned the following:

·         Potential development at existing locations (e.g., Davenport moving off water to land)

·         Market analysis work to look at potential for new licenses (e.g., Linn County passed a referendum)

·         With the recent referendum not passing in Warren County, they must wait 8 years before considering it again. 

·         Green County may try to pass a referendum in August

·         Advanced deposit wagering (horse racing)

On Jan 22nd, John Bouslog & Phil Hodgin of the Des Moines Noon Rotary club presented to the Johnston Rotary Club plans for the Rotary Riverwalk Park.  During the 100 year anniversary of Rotary, the International President of Rotary asked each club to step out of its comfort zone and do a project fitting for the occasion. The Des Moines Club landed on the idea of creating a Rotary Park as part of the Des Moines River Walk.

They’ve continued to shepherd the idea over the years working through the many levels of private and public interests affiliated with the River Walk.  After reviewing many sites, they’ve landed on the west end of the pedestrian bridge next to Wells Fargo Arena.  The estimated cost of the project is $500,000. The project would consist of an oversized bobber and fishing pole. The bobber is roughly 12 feet in diameter and the fishing pole is roughly 84 feet long. 

The park would be owned and maintained by the City of Des Moines. In exchange for its fund raising efforts and stewardship of the project, the Rotary would have naming rights for 20 years. The cost to renew the naming rights is estimated to be 5 to 10% of the project cost.  The Des Moines Club is visiting metro area clubs and asking for their support for the project. They are hoping to begin construction this year.

THE ROTARY FOUR WAY TEST

• Is it the TRUTH?

• Is it FAIR to all concerned?

• Will it build GOODWILL and BETTER FRIENDSHIPS?

• Will it be BENEFICAL to all concerned?