Hard Rock International is assuming at least 85% ownership of a northwestern Indiana casino from an Indianapolis-based ownership group whose top executives have faced criminal and financial misconduct allegations.
Only four states, Nevada, Mississippi, New Jersey and Pennsylvania, took in more gambling revenue than Indiana during the first half of the year.
The Indiana Gaming Commission voted Thursday not to renew Lucy Luck’s license for a planned casino in Terre Haute after it failed to complete financing for the project.
The casino’s groundbreaking could happen in late June or early July, with an opening by fall 2022, Hard Rock International executive Jon Lucas told the Indiana Gaming Commission on Tuesday.
Officials told the State Lottery Commission this past week that they projected that scratch-off ticket sales would be up almost 27% for the fiscal year ending June 30 compared with a year ago.
The Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians is expecting state regulators to approve its ownership of the casino later this year.
The Hard Rock Casino Northern Indiana’s opening was snarled by a state investigation into allegations of financial wrongdoings by the casino developer’s former top executive.
The complaint argues the Indiana Gaming Commission is not permitted to require investors to acquire a Level 1 occupational gambling license, which requires the collection of extensive financial and personal information that would not necessarily be kept confidential.
The 20-year agreement prevents state officials from allowing new casino competition across most of northern and northwestern Indiana, including no future moves by the existing casinos in Hammond, East Chicago, Gary and Michigan City.
Senate Bill 245 would double the prize limits for certain pull-tab games and allow the 1,242 bars and taverns with Type II gaming licenses to offer sports-themed pull-tab games and tip boards.
Casino giant Caesars Entertainment Inc., which operates multiple properties in Indiana, is suing a long list of insurance carriers it accuses of balking at paying its business interruption costs.
The 53-day lag between when the commission ordered Spectacle to remove Rod Ratcliff from his role as an owner to when the company complied was unacceptable, according to Gaming Commission Executive Director Sara Gonso Tait.
The National Council on Problem Gambling on Tuesday issued a set of recommendations for such deals that aim to reduce the danger of students developing a gambling problem.
“All Indiana Bets” will begin airing on WISH-TV in August, DuJuan McCoy, owner and CEO of WISH parent Circle City Broadcasting, announced Monday.
The 25,000-square-foot expansion to the Shelbyville casino will provide space for more slot machines and additional gaming tables, plus upgrade its poker facilities.
Rod Ratcliff, the former chief executive for Centaur Gaming and Spectacle Entertainment, reached a settlement agreement with the Indiana Gaming Commission that requires him to sell his remaining casino ownership shares.
The Indiana Gaming Commission alleges longtime casino executive Rod Ratcliff funneled money from his former company into a personal gambling account and repeatedly concealed financial information from the commission that should have been disclosed.
The Indiana Gaming Commission is arguing that longtime casino executive Rod Ratcliff’s lawsuit should be dismissed because he has not exhausted all of his administrative appeal options.
The agreement finalized this past week would allow the addition of live table games such as blackjack and roulette, slot machines and sports betting.
In a lawsuit filed Tuesday, longtime casino executive Rod Ratcliff argues that the commission violated his right to due process and says he believes the commission is trying to force him to sell his interests in the new Gary casino to Hard Rock International, a partner in the project.
