Confronted in Clayton Wednesday morning by opponents to a proposed $350 million casino complex near the confluence of the Missouri and Mississippi rivers, Dooley said he is hoping that the controversy could end in a way agreeable to all sides, just as he said it did in Lemay, where the River City casino will open next week.

"We have to figure out how to make it a win-win situation," Dooley said. "If we can make it win-win in Lemay, we can make it win-win in north county. That's how we get things done in St. Louis County."

Dooley has already gone along with the County Council's approval of a recommendation from the Zoning Commission that the 377-acre site be rezoned to allow construction of a casino, convention center, golf course, theater, retail and parking for 8,000 cars. Asked by opponents to the plan why he didn't veto the change, Dooley insisted repeatedly:

"The zoning change has nothing to do with the casino."

A few dozen members of the coalition against the north county casino came out to the county government center because of the Missouri Gaming Commission's meeting there. The north county plan isn't far enough along to be on the commission's agenda so opponents to the plan were not given a chance to speak.

The main item on the agenda was final approval of the license for River City Casino in Lemay to operate. The $450 million project -- featuring a 90,000-foot casino with 55 table games and 2,103 slot machines -- expects to draw 4.5 million people between its opening March 4 and the end of the year. It will provide 1,137 jobs, operators said.

The unanimous approval of a license for River City means no more licenses are available in the state, since voters capped the number at 13 in 2008. But with the possible shutdown of the President later this year, maneuvering has already begun to pick up that license.

Attorney Ed Griesedieck, the spokesman for the would-be developers of the north county site, said Wednesday that between the possible availability of the President's license, and the possible transfer of a license from other locations, the north county site is "the leading location in the state" for a new casino.

"Toward that end," he said, "we are having serious and continuing discussions with operators and working toward putting together the best proposal."

Despite the protests from a coalition that includes environmentalists and opponents to gambling in general, Griesedieck said the proposed complex has backing from others in the area.

"We continue to receive tremendous support and good thoughts from the north county community," he said, "particularly employers in the area and people seeking work and just seeking progress and investment in the north county area. We are very excited about the reception we have received."

Those who gathered in Clayton before the Gaming Commission meeting had the opposite view. Sporting homemade signs declaring "Eagles - Yes. CasiNO" and "Don't Gamble with our RIVER," they made it clear that though they may have lost the first battle over zoning, they are prepared for a lengthy war.

"We knew this would be a long process," said Dora Gianoulakis, president of the Spanish Lake Community Association. "It'll be going on for years. This is not going away. We're to work this until we win.

"These people are going to get a gaming license one way or the other, and today is just the first step to end this. They are not listening to the people."

The Rev. Harold Hendrick, a long-time gambling opponent, added: "We will not be ignored. We will not allow ourselves to be ignored."

As the opponents rode the escalator up to where the Gaming Commission was meeting, they were met by Dooley, who greeted them in campaign mode. But the mood quickly changed when he was asked why he didn't veto the zoning change and where he stands on the casino project.

"We're going to do what's right for St. Louis County," he said. "We don't know yet what that's going to be.

"Does that mean that everybody will be completely satisfied? That's impossible."

Dooley's insistence that the rezoning had nothing to do with the casino can be taken two ways. Glenn Powers, director of planning for St. Louis County, said that although the proposed complex could not be built without the zoning change, the rezoning by itself is only the first step on a long road.

He noted that further approvals from the county, the Port Authority and the Gaming Commission, among other bodies, would be required before any casino could operate on the site, which is adjacent to the Columbia Bottom wildlife area. He also said that in his more than 30 years with the county, he cannot recall any time where a county executive has vetoed a recommended rezoning.

Because state law limits casinos to operating near the Missouri or Mississippi river, Powers said, the north county site is one of the few areas left where such a project could be located. He said county officials do not generally take a stand on market issues like whether another casino could succeed in such a location.

Powers did note that "a casino at that location still has tremendous environmental challenges. Assuming it could meet those challenges, I think it is an appropriate location for a casino.

"Could there be flood plain problems? Absolutely. But to say right away that a casino is inappropriate for an area near a river or on a flood plain is to say that the state law is inappropriate."

He also said that once an operator becomes involved in the plan, it is likely to change significantly.

"We have no real proposal, no real operator here," Powers said. "The plan that they gave us is probably fictitious. If the site becomes something that operators bid on, you will probably see totally different plans."