ROANOKE, Va. (WDBJ) - Tuesday, the City of Roanoke announced it’s exploring the possibility of bringing a casino to the Berglund Center . The city is looking into creating an entertainment district and said a casino could generate millions of dollars in revenue to go toward infrastructure, public safety, and schools.

Wednesday, WDBJ7 sat down with two former Roanoke mayors, with combined decades of service leading the city, to get their thoughts on the idea.

“I think it’s misdirected. I’m not so sure that’s a great idea. For probably two or three reasons. First of all, Roanoke isn’t that big of a market,” said former Roanoke Mayor David Bowers.

Bowers served four terms as mayor from 1992 to 2000 and from 2008 to 2016. He also narrowly lost the 2024 mayoral election.

He said he doesn’

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