PM talks down Kislovodsk gambling zone proposal

Monday 13th of March 2017

Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev has spoken against the creation of a gambling zone in the Russian resort town of Kislovodsk, which was previously proposed by Stavropol Territory governor Vladimir Vladimirov, local media reports.

"We'd better deal with Sochi now, how [the gaming zone in Sochi] will work," Medvedev said at a meeting with Vladimirov, suggesting that it's better to build a direct roads between Kislovodsk and Sochi instead of casinos.

Vladimirov, in turn, said: "If we build this road, we will no longer need casinos [in Kislovodsk], we'll go to casinos by car.”

To link Sochi and Kislovodsk, a 95 km section of road will need to be built, and the existing section out of the 290 km project will need to be reconstructed. The cost of the entire project is around RUB 65 billion (US$110 million)

Vladimirov previously asked Russian senators to support the idea of setting up a gaming zone in Caucasus Mineralniye Vody (Mineral Waters).

He even set the date for its opening in October 2017, saying that it would have a positive impact on replenishing the state budget, projecting annual profits at RUB 1.5 billion.

Bricks & Mortar Gambling zone Proposal