By Sarah Karush
The Associated Press

DETROIT - When the first casino opened five years ago, hopes were high that it would change Detroit's fortunes.

But while that casino and two others now provide reliable revenue for the city and have contributed to a mix of new industries and entertainment, they have not been a magic bullet for redevelopment.

That's because most of the money casino patrons bring to downtown Detroit stays within casino walls. Concerns also persist about the social costs of gambling, as some area residents find themselves unable to resist the casinos.

"There are certain proponents of gambling - self-interested groups - that say that it will be a massive redevelopment tool. That is simply demonstrably false," said David Littmann, chief economist at Comerica Bank.

The three casinos have taken in $4.8 billion since the MGM Grand Detroit Casino opened in July 1999, followed by MotorCity Casino in December 1999 and Greektown Casino in 2000. They pay 9.9 percent of their revenues to the city and another 8.1 percent to a state education fund. A separate $25 million fee funds state regulators and programs to help compulsive gamblers.

In the 2001-2002 fiscal year, the city collected $122 million, or 12 percent of its revenues, from the casinos. Meanwhile, property and income tax collection has been crippled by decades of population decline and economic stagnation.

The three casinos employ about 7,600 people, more than half of them Detroit residents.

But those who hoped casinos would bring people to the city's restaurants and hotels have been disappointed. Casinos have their own restaurants, bars and entertainment.

Still, George Boyer, chief operating officer of MGM Grand, maintains the casinos have been a catalyst for other development.

"There are new reasons for people to get refamiliarized with the city," he said.

Detroit is expecting another major round of casino investment - if certain hurdles are overcome. The current ones were built with the understanding that they would soon be replaced by permanent casinos with hotels.

MGM Grand sees about 10,000 visitors a day - a majority from the Detroit metro area, Boyer said. More than 15 percent of patrons travel from outside Michigan.

But the casinos have taken a toll on people such as Norma Astourian, who said she spent as much time as she could in them.

"You don't know that there's no stopping. You don't know that you can't put the brakes on," she said.

A 2001 survey by the Michigan Department of Community Health found that 4.5 percent of adults in the state were compulsive gamblers. In the city of Detroit, the number is 11.4 percent.

For Dee Dee Odom, the casinos brought opportunity. She went to work at the MGM Grand before it opened and is now the financial controller. "This was pretty much the most exciting thing that I've seen coming to Detroit," she said.