NIAGARA FALLS, Ont. -- Wayne Thomson can remember exactly where he was when he heard the province of Ontario was considering a law to allow casino gambling at two border towns.
"At first I was skeptical," the former mayor and current councillor of Niagara Falls, Ont. said.
The Canadian resort city was eventually chosen to get one of those two casinos, and Thomson says that has made all the difference between the two cities along the gorge.
Niagara Falls, Ont. celebrated the opening of Casino Niagara in December of 1996. Eight years later, the more luxurious Fallsview Casino opened.
Thomson says in the 5 years after the casino announcement, the City of Niagara Falls, Ont. considered $3 billion worth of building permits.
"Once the casino decision was made, we had an explosion of high-rise development take place," Thomson says.
Now, the tourism industry in the city supports 36,000 jobs.
"If it wasn't for the tourist industry, we'd be in deep trouble," Thomson says.
He's quick to say the casinos aren't enough. But they helped bring in many other major attractions, including a massive indoor water park, museums and first-class shows. On any summer day, the sidewalks are packed with people along the falls, but also in Clifton Hill.
"Don't criticize Clifton Hill," Thomson said. "That was our lifeline for years and years and continues today."
Thomson also credits much of his city's success to the Niagara Parks Commission, which in the 1800s purchased and preserved many miles of waterfront property, stretching from Fort Erie all the way to Niagara on the Lake.
He says the New York side instead put some focus on industry, much of which has left.
So what's Thomson's advice to his counterparts on the American side?
"I think they've got to concentrate on trying to bring some first-class attractions to that area," Thomson said, adding that the casino simply didn't do for New York what it did for Ontario.
Thomson said there's progress to report across the gorge, and he thinks leaders are taking Niagara Falls, N.Y. in the right direction.