Landing Indiana’s last riverboat license brings business boom in tiny Vevay

Tuesday, May 16, 2000 | 8:39 a.m.

Once, that would have been an impossible dream. As one of Indiana's poorest counties, the Ohio River county struggled for years with high unemployment and little industry.

But landing the last of Indiana's 10 riverboat casino projects is reviving Switzerland County's flagging economy, even before the new riverboat arrives from an Alabama shipyard at a resort complex under construction.

"Anybody who wants to work can find a job," said Allison, a county commissioner.

Construction on the $200 million Belterra Resort and Casino has proceeded at a rapid pace since California-based Pinnacle Entertainment broke ground last July.

The riverboat and its resort is scheduled to open in August.

Many of Switzerland's 9,000 residents currently drive long distances to work, but casino supporters think that will change with a flood of new, homegrown jobs.

The riverboat's staff is expected to burgeon to 1,400 after the complex opens, cutting Switzerland County's 3 percent unemployment rate.

"We've needed industry really bad," said retiree Betty Bovard, 69. "It'll have its down sides, (but) you can already see the difference. There are people working now that haven't worked in years."

Belterra's $55 million riverboat is taking shape at a shipyard in Mobile, Ala. When complete, it will hold 3,000 people, 1,350 slot machines and 57 table games on two decks.

Nearly 500 tradesmen are working double time to finish a 308-room hotel and pavilion. A $12 million golf course is expected to open sometime next year.

County government hit the jackpot when state officials granted the casino a license in 1998.

After the riverboat is operating, the county could receive about $12 million a year - more than eight times this year's $1.4 million operating budget.

About $4.2 million has already arrived. It will fund a new medical clinic and pay for new buildings at the county fairgrounds. Another $750,000 has gone to fund roads and other improvements.

About half of the county's roads are gravel.

"We can't take care of anything," Allison said. "We haven't had the money."

The improvement in police and fire protection alone would be a big benefit, said Randy See, owner of the local Dairy Queen.

The biggest problem from the casino's search for new employees will be increased competition for hourly workers. See said he can't compete with the casino's benefits.

Not everyone is thrilled to have a casino moving into town.

Scottsburg businessman Floyd Coates had urged the Indiana Gaming Commission not to approve the casino's license.

"The issues are the same everywhere: Gambling being a nonproductive economic activity, the profits leaving the community (and) draining local people of money," he said. "It's not in the best interest of the folks who live here."