Hilton moving riverboat from New Orleans to Shreveport

Monday, Oct. 14, 1996 | 11:59 a.m.

The Louisiana Gaming Control Board voted 4-1 to allow Hilton Hotels Corp. to shift the boat from along the Mississippi River near the French Quarter to a site next to Harrah's dockside casino near the Texas border.

The action was taken after the state attorney general's office said that a regulatory investigation of a Hilton-owned boat in Missouri was not enough to deny the request.

City officials in New Orleans had protested the move, saying it would cost tax dollars and jobs. But Hilton and its local partner, New Orleans Paddlewheels, will pay the city $10 million.

In addition, jobs will be guaranteed for displaced Flamingo workers, either in Shreveport or at Harrah's land casino scheduled to open next summer in New Orleans. The company would also have to pay workers relocation costs to Shreveport under the agreement.

The city may challenge the move in court, but no decision has been made, said Roy Rodney, gambling counsel to New Orleans Mayor Marc Morial.

"We still oppose the move of the Flamingo," said Eugene Green, the mayor's executive assistant. "It does pain us to see the loss of 700 jobs."

The boat will have to open in Shreveport by Oct. 1, 1997, or 30 days after the land casino opens, whichever comes first.

Under Hilton's plan, the Flamingo will sit next to Harrah's casino in Shreveport. The two companies have plans to build a hotel at the site together. They will compete against directly against three boats in Bossier City: Casino Magic, Isle of Capri, and Horseshoe.

Shreveport-Bossier City regularly leads Louisiana's four riverboat markets in terms of money won from gamblers. It's the only market where unlimited dockside gambling is allowed; boats in Lake Charles, Baton Rouge and the New Orleans area must cruise.

At issue in Missouri are Hilton's dealings with a convicted felon long after he disclosed his legal situation to the company. An investigation by the Missouri Gaming Commission has held up the opening of a riverboat casino near Kansas City.

However, Assistant Attorney General Jenifer Schaye told Louisiana regulators that the Missouri investigation is not a legal impediment to the Flamingo's move.

"What I am hearing you say is whatever Hilton did was dumb but not illegal," said board member John Kennedy.

Caddo Parish voters will not get a chance to approve or reject the move, despite passage of a constitutional amendment last month requiring local-option voter approval of riverboat berth changes. Gov. Mike Foster has not yet officially proclaimed the adoption of the constitutional amendment passed by voters on Nov. 21.

Foster has said he will proclaim the amendment passed on Tuesday.

In contrast to Shreveport-Bossier City, New Orleans has been a major disappointment to the gambling industry. The two-boat River City complex failed last year after operating for only six weeks, while Harrah's land casino project is in bankruptcy court reorganization.

The first riverboat casino in Louisiana -- the Star Casino -- also moved from New Orleans to Lake Charles after losing a court fight over dockside gambling.

The Flamingo's departure will leave Orleans Parish with only one riverboat, Bally's Casino. Two floating casinos -- the Treasure Chest and the Boomtown Belle -- operate in suburban Jefferson Parish.