Gaming briefs for Sept. 19, 2003

Friday, Sept. 19, 2003 | 11:15 a.m.

Louisiana shipyard to build new riverboat casino

JENNINGS, La. -- Leevac Shipyards has been awarded a $40.2 million contract to build the state's largest riverboat casino for Pinnacle Entertainment Inc.'s casino resort in Lake Charles.

The shipyard, located on the Mermentau River five miles east of Jennings, has already started construction on the large one-story riverboat.

Troy Skelton, Leevac's sales manager, said Thursday that the shipyard has set the riverboat's completion date for December 2004.

The one-story riverboat for Las Vegas-based Pinnacle's $325 million casino-resort in Lake Charles will be 330 feet long and 225 feet wide.

Colorado casinos report strong August

LAKEWOOD, Colo. -- State casinos generated $65.8 million in August, the best month ever for the gaming towns of Black Hawk and Cripple Creek.

Earnings were up 6.6 percent from July, when casinos reported $61.7 million in adjusted gross proceeds, the Colorado Division of Gaming reported Thursday. It was also a 1.8 percent increase from August 2002, which brought in $64.6 million.

Black Hawk's 22 casinos brought in $47 million in August, breaking the previous record of $46.6 million set in July 2002. The area accounted for 71 percent of Colorado's gaming market.

Colorado casinos paid $5.2 million in gaming tax proceeds in August.

Lac Vieux tribe near deal on casinos

DETROIT -- An agreement is in the works between the Lac Vieux Desert Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians and two Detroit casinos that could end a 6-year-old lawsuit that blocked construction of new facilities and hotels.

Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick told the Detroit Free Press for a story today that a settlement may be near, although he wouldn't disclose details of what might break the logjam.

The Lac Vieux Desert Band, which has 430 members and a casino in Watersmeet in the Upper Peninsula, sued Detroit in 1997, saying its constitutional rights were violated when the city gave license preferences to MotorCity and Greektown casino ownership groups.

Details are still being completed, but each casino is expected to pay more than $35 million over 25 years to the tribe, The Detroit News reported.

Representatives of the Greektown and MGM Grand Detroit casinos declined comment on word of a possible agreement and the potential introduction of a competitor. MotorCity Casino and Lac Vieux officials didn't return phone calls seeking comment from the Free Press.

Video-gambling opponents claim campaign violations

DENVER -- Opponents of a plan to add video gambling to Colorado racetracks filed a complaint with the secretary of state Thursday, saying backers of the amendment hid campaign contributions from a British gambling company.

The complaint filed by John Dill, chairman of "Don't Turn Racetracks Into Casinos," cites company financial records in which Wembley PLC executives said they expect to spend $10 million to support the initiative.

Colorado law requires issue committees to report all campaign contributions. A campaign finance reform measure adopted by Colorado voters last year prohibits giving money to one individual or company with the understanding that the funds will be passed along to a campaign.

Dill said Wembley PLC has been sending checks from its London headquarters to Wembley USA executives in Colorado to be used for the campaign.