The Arkansas Racing Commission (ARC) voted to reject Gulfside Casino Partnership’s application for the Pope County gaming license. As a result, Cherokee Nation Entertainment (CNE) remains the only applicant to develop a casino resort in Pope County.
Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration officials said Gulfside’s application was rejected because it did not include the required letter of support from the local government.
Applicants had to submit a $250,000 application fee plus a letter or ordinance of approval from the Pope County Quorum Court or the county judge.
According to KATV, ARC spokesman Scott Hardin said, “You have to have a letter of support from the local governing body, either the quorum court or the county judge. If you don’t have that letter of support, it is simply not considered a qualified application. That is what we saw here. Gulfside did not have that letter of support.”
CNE also submitted an application for the license. Hardin said although CNE’s application has been approved, the selection process is far from over. Hardin said the application will be thoroughly reviewed by an expert chosen by the commission and the developer will have to make a presentation to commissioners.
Per KATV, he said, “Tell us about how many table games, how will that work. Tell us how your management is going to work, tell us your timeline for operation. From there, they will each write down a score, compile it and likely get back together and issue that license.” Hardin added, “There will be a company licensed in Pope County very quickly and this process has taken a while to get here but a license is about to be issued.”
Gulfside is likely to file an appeal, Hardin said. He emphasized the commission has made every effort to assure the selection process has been fair and correct. He said, “Tens of millions of dollars wagered every month for sports betting and much more than that when you get to slots and table games. There is a reason that it is competitive and that is because that license is extremely valuable.”
Hardin said the commission also received a letter from a third interested party, Churchill Downs, but it did not have local government approval nor did it submit the $250,000 application fee.
