Silence is sometimes said to be golden. In the case of a casino in Cleveland County, it is not. 

The City of Kings Mountain is being assailed by private LLCs who are in large part unknown quantities. A pre-launch facility for slot machines has been reduced to a pre-manufactured modular building to hold less than half of the originally planned 1,300 machines. A pending lawsuit in the D.C. courts threatens the development of the casino because it points out a flawed approval process and broken laws and regulations. An unproven developer has been entrusted with what has been said to be the biggest economic development in our county.

What do we hear from our county and local officials these days? Silence. A silence that fails to highlight the influx of campaign money to politicians who have voiced their support. A silence that refuses to acknowledge a developer who has a questionable past and poor track record in the casino industry. A silence that history will not judge well.

Thank you for your willingness to cover concerns about the casino that are not voiced by our local officials or media. I hope that residents in Cleveland County will begin to read your coverage to be educated about some of the concerning issues with the casino.

Alton Beal

Mayor of Lattimore, N.C.