Gamblers at Coquitlam's Boulevard Casino contributed more than $1.8 million to city coffers in the first quarter of the year.
As host city to a casino, Coquitlam receives a 10% cut of net proceeds from the gaming venue on United Boulevard; for January to March, that's $1,879,829 - up more than $100,000 than the previous quarter.
Since Great Canadian Casino opened its business in 2002, Coquitlam has collected around $90 million that is spent on major capital projects and projects for non-profit groups.
Last month, city staff said it would tweak the criteria for community groups to apply for casino cash and are recommending the three grant programs be combined, the residency requirement be loosened and the application deadline be changed.
Since the Spirit of Coquitlam grants started in 2002, the city has handed out more than $6.2 million. The Active Grant program, which began in 2009 after the Gender Equity program ended, has allocated $103,878 in an effort to get kids fit while the Sports Hosting Grant program has awarded $48,000 since 2004 for national and international sports events.
