Tunica casino ready to open

Monday, July 26, 1999 | 11:27 a.m.

TUNICA, Miss. -- The $33.5 million Isle of Capri Casino planned to open today. It will be the 10th casino in Tunica County, which is part of the greater market of Memphis, Tenn.

The property's 28,000-square-foot casino includes 875 slots and 15 table games, the Commercial Appeal newspaper in Memphis reported.

The property has two restaurants -- a buffet and a steak house -- a bar with room for a band to play and a private function room on the third floor, the paper said.

A 235-room hotel is scheduled to open by August 2000 and work is about to start on two theaters -- one with 750 seats, the other 1,250 seats -- that are a joint venture between Isle of Capri and Las Vegas entertainer Wayne Newton.

The property is on Tunica's Casino Strip near three other properties.

Jeff Wallace, a researcher at the University of Memphis, said the Isle of Capri's location will help.

"This just adds to that critical mass of that location relative to Casino Center," he said. "That's what people are looking for, tight locations, a lot like the Las Vegas experience."

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