Word: emeralds
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Dates: during 1990-1999
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...photojournalists fanned out over the Emerald Isle for a period of 24 hours. The resulting contrasts are lyric enough for poetry (brides and nuns, musicians and farmers) or too bitter for words (glowering British soldiers in Belfast, homeless Dubliners sheltering in an abandoned...
...traditionally cocked a snoot at natural restrictions, rolled up their sleeves and hacked or drilled the world of their dreams out of the wilderness. Something in the Western temperament strives mightily to deny that much of the region is a desert -- witness the tropical extravagance of Beverly Hills, the emerald golf courses of Palm Springs, the ubiquitous swimming pools throughout the West...
...competitive hype points to a harsh reality: as surely as a flush beats a straight, some of the riverboat ventures are destined to fold. "I am concerned about saturation if every state gets it," admits Bernard Goldstein, owner of Emerald Lady and Diamond Lady, which docks in Bettendorf, Iowa. Michael Jones, director of the Illinois state lottery through the mid-1980s, warns that the potential audience for the novelty cruises may be smaller than boosters imagine. For one thing, he notes, lottery players and higher-stakes gamblers are different animals. While lottery enthusiasts may sample riverboat gambling once or twice...
...1980s, the town's largest employers -- Sheaffer and Chevron -- staged devastating layoffs. Although citizens liked to boast that Fort Madison was "a place where you can raise kids," many drifted away; since 1987 the town's tax base has dwindled 20%. To attract Goldstein and his $10 million Emerald Lady, Fort Madison floated a $2.2 million bond issue that financed a waterside pavilion, a walkway and parking lots. In return, city fathers expect annual revenues of as much as $300,000 -- if the venture succeeds...
...good. More than 500 workers -- mostly waitresses, croupiers and maintenance staff -- were employed for Emerald Lady's launching, and Fort Madison has benefited from the 40% rise in tourist information requests statewide. Local officials trust that their investment will be covered by the ship's dock fees, a 0.5% tax on gross gambling receipts and a 50 cents charge the town levies on each passenger. "The boat is breathing new life and enthusiasm into the town," says Father Robert McAleer of St. Mary's Roman Catholic Church. "There's exuberance over something...