Bidders Have Until January For Southeast Kansas Casino

The state of Kansas thought they were doing a good thing for themselves when they gave the go ahead for four state owned casinos. They are finding out that it is much more difficult to get the casinos open than it is to allow them.

Three of the four Counties where casinos will be built already know who will be running their casinos. The fourth, Cherokee County, thought they knew, but Penn National pulled out of an agreement at the last minute.

That leaves the Kansas Lottery scrambling to find anyone who wants to build the casino. They are searching for a company to run a casino in either Cherokee or Crawford Counties. The Commission has now set a deadline of January 21st for applications to run the casino.

With casino companies scaling back their expansion plans thanks to the economy, it is not known whether interested parties could even come up with the money needed to build the casino. The company that wins the bid must invest at least $225 million on the facility, and another $25 million just for the right to run the casino.

"We think the market is there. We're taking a chance on the economy coming back, but it always does," said Executive Director of the Kansas Lottery, Ed Van Petten. Although he is optimistic, Penn National was the only group to bid on a casino in Cherokee the first time around.

October 3, 2008
Posted By Tom Jones
Staff Editor, CasinoGamblingWeb.com
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