Casino Vicksburg
Casino Vicksburg, formerly Lady Luck Casino Vicksburg, in Vicksburg, Mississippi is a 25,000-square-foot (2,300 m2) casino with an 89-room hotel.[1][2] It is owned and operated by Twin River Worldwide Holdings.
Casino Vicksburg | |
---|---|
Location | Vicksburg, Mississippi |
Opening date | July 12, 1994 |
No. of rooms | 89[1] |
Total gaming space | 25,000 sq ft (2,300 m2)[1] |
Casino type | Land-based |
Owner | Twin River Worldwide Holdings |
Previous names |
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Website | www |
History
The project was initiated by the Rainbow Casino Corporation (RCC), made up of John A. Barrett and Leigh Seippel. Hospitality Franchise Systems agreed to provide $7.5 million in financing, and to franchise a hotel at the property under its Days Inn brand.[3] Six Flags agreed to build a 10-acre theme park named Pennants.[4][5] United Gaming (later known as Alliance Gaming, and then Bally Technologies) signed on to manage the casino.[6]
The Rainbow Casino opened on July 12, 1994, with 574 slot machines and 28 table games.[7] United Gaming took a 45 percent ownership stake on the day it opened.[6] It took a controlling stake the following year, after RCC failed to finance elements of the casino that it was responsible for.[8]
The hotel, owned by AmeriHost, opened in May 1995, and the company called it "the most upscale Days Inn anywhere".[9] It was rebranded as an AmeriHost Inn by 2000,[10] and in 2002 it was sold to AmeriHost's former chairman, Michael P. Holtz.[11]
The theme park, renamed as Funtricity Entertainment Park, also opened in May 1995.[12] Six Flags designed it as the flagship in a new chain of entertainment centers, targeted at markets too small to support a full-size park;[13] within two years, though, the concept was reportedly put on hold.[14] The park closed in 1998,[15] and Alliance bought the site for $500,000[16] and adapted its main building for use as a concert venue.[17]
A casino expansion was completed in 1999, increasing the number of slot machines from 725 to over 1,000.[18]
In 1999, United Gaming put the property, along with its other casino in Nevada, on the market, to help pay down corporate debts, but no satisfactory offers were received.[18]
Bally put the Rainbow back on the market in 2006.[19] In 2010, a sale was finally made to Isle of Capri Casinos for $80 million.[20] Isle of Capri rebranded the property under its Lady Luck name in November 2012.[21]
In March 2018, Eldorado Resorts (which had acquired Isle of Capri Casinos in 2017) agreed to sell the property to Churchill Downs Inc., owner of the neighboring Riverwalk Casino, for $51 million.[22] The sale was canceled, however, as a result of inquiries from antitrust regulators.[23] In July 2019, Eldorado agreed instead to sell the property to Twin River Worldwide Holdings, along with the Isle of Capri Casino Kansas City, for a total of $230 million.[24] The deal was made to help finance Eldorado's pending acquisition of Caesars Entertainment.[24] The sale to Twin River closed in July 2020, and the property was renamed as Casino Vicksburg.[25]
See also
References
- Wally Northway (2010-04-06). "Isle of Capri buys Rainbow Casino". Mississippi Business Journal.
- Howard Stutz (2010-04-06). "Isle of Capri acquires casino in Mississippi". Las Vegas Review-Journal.
- "N.J. firm signs pact for Vicksburg casino". The Advocate. Baton Rouge: via NewsBank. AP. September 28, 1993. Retrieved 2012-06-14. (subscription required)
- Taylor, Louise (February 18, 1994). "Lady Luck gets approval at Coahoma". The Sun Herald. Biloxi: via NewsBank. Retrieved 2012-06-14. (subscription required)
- "Six Flags plans Vicksburg park". The Commercial Appeal. Memphis: via NewsBank. AP. February 23, 1995. Retrieved 2012-06-14. (subscription required)
- "Utd Gaming to acquire 45% stake in partnership". Dow Jones News Service. via Factiva. July 13, 1994. Retrieved 2012-06-14. (subscription required)
- "Vicksburg welcomes 4th casino". The Sun Hearld. Biloxi: via NewsBank. AP. July 13, 1994. Retrieved 2012-06-14. (subscription required)
- Form 10-K (Report). Alliance Gaming. September 28, 1995. p. F-18. Retrieved 2012-06-14.
- Faust, Fred (May 15, 1995). "4 operators share Vicksburg". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. via NewsBank. Retrieved 2012-06-14. (subscription required)
- Form 10-K (Report). AmeriHost Properties. March 24, 2000. p. 6. Retrieved 2012-06-15.
- Form 10-K (Report). Arlington Hospitality. March 31, 2003. p. 39. Retrieved 2012-06-15.
- Form 10-K (Report). Alliance Gaming. September 28, 1995. Casino Operations. Retrieved 2012-06-14.
- McCann, Nita Chilton (May 29, 1995). "Flagship location of Six Flags' newest attraction comes to Vicksburg". Mississippi Business Journal. via Factiva. Retrieved 2012-06-15. (subscription required)
- Johnson, Greg (March 23, 1997). "The Players". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2012-06-15.
- "Funtricity Family Entertainment Park to close" (Press release). Premier Parks (via Factiva). September 11, 1998. Retrieved 2012-06-14. (subscription required)
- Form 10-K (Report). Alliance Gaming. September 28, 1999. Casino Operations. Retrieved 2012-06-15.
- Purpura, Paul (June 20, 1999). "Rainbow approaches 5th anniversary". Associated Press Newswires. via Factiva. Retrieved 2012-06-14. (subscription required)
- "Few serious offers may pull Rainbow Casino off market". The Commercial Appeal. Memphis: via NewsBank. AP. February 23, 2000. Retrieved 2012-06-15. (subscription required)
- Hamerman, Joshua (December 4, 2006). "More gaming M&A deals: A safe bet". Mergers & Acquisitions Report. via HighBeam. Archived from the original on March 7, 2016. Retrieved 2012-06-15. (subscription required)
- Stutz, Howard (June 9, 2010). "Isle of Capri completes $80 million casino purchase". Las Vegas Review-Journal. Retrieved 2012-06-13.
- "Lady Luck returns to Mississippi with re-branding of Vicksburg casino" (PDF) (Press release). Isle of Capri Casinos. November 30, 2012. Retrieved 2012-12-03.
- Hidalgo, Jason (March 1, 2018). "Eldorado Resorts agrees to sell two casinos in Pennsylvania and Mississippi". Reno Gazette Journal. Retrieved 2018-03-01.
- Marty Finley (July 9, 2018). "Churchill Downs Inc. terminates plan to purchase casino". Louisville Business First. Retrieved 2018-07-13.
- Bailey Schulz (July 11, 2019). "Eldorado Resorts to sell 2 properties in preparation of Caesars deal". Las Vegas Review-Journal. Retrieved 2019-07-13.
- Bailey Schulz (July 2, 2020). "Eldorado sells 2 properties ahead of Caesars merger". Las Vegas Review-Journal. Retrieved 2020-07-02.