Iowa-based Elite Casino Resorts will develop a $100 million casino complex at Fonner Park in Grand Island, Nebraska.
The budget includes $45 million for new construction and about $3.5 million for upgrades to the existing Fonner Park. Plans include a casino with 650 slot machines and 20 table games, VIP lounge, sportsbook, restaurants and show lounge, plus a 116-room boutique hotel with indoor and outdoor pools, spa and salon. Officials at Elite, operators of casinos in Iowa City, Davenport and Larchwood, Iowa, said the project would create 400 new jobs.
Fonner Park Chief Executive Officer Chris Kotulak said, “I had an image in my mind, both architecturally, operationally and a mindset of what I thought would be a good fit for Fonner Park and Grand Island. Elite Casino Resorts quickly rose to the top among our impressive list of candidates.” Nine companies submitted proposals to operate the casino, including “the biggest of the big” and “the smallest of the small,” Kotulak said, adding the selection process involved many meetings and “a lot of travel,” Kotulak said.
Elite Casino Resorts Chief Executive Officer Dan Kehl said the company will build a “big, beautiful resort with first-class amenities that should make Grand Island and Fonner Park proud.” He said the new casino resort will reimagine Fonner Park and reinvigorate the “iconic property,” built in 1954. “We have spent more than 30 years building a business in towns your size, and it’s in our wheelhouse. We’re so excited about this partnership with Fonner Park,” Kehl said.
Kehl said a temporary gaming facility will open in the Fonner Park concourse, then the hotel and casino will be constructed in a single 18-month phase. “The casino floor will have a seamless connection to the existing Fonner Park structure to guarantee guest flow between the casino, racing operations and the convention center,” he said.
Kehl stated the hotel will be “rich with amenities” and include luxury suites. He continued, “We will offer classy, fun and varied restaurant choices,” including a Grab & Go restaurant, a family dining establishment and a sports bar and grill, as well as the rooftop Ruthie’s Steak & Seafood, offering an expansive view of Grand Island.
Fonner Park’s casino is the third to be announced publicly since Nebraska voters last year approved casino gambling at the state’s horseracing tracks. In January, WarHorse Gaming, a subsidiary of the Winnebago Tribe’s Ho-Chunk Inc., unveiled plans for a $200 million casino resort at Lincoln Race Track. Expected to open next year, it will include 1,200 gaming stations, spa, restaurant, bars and conference and event space plus a 196-room hotel.
WarHorse also announced a $200 million casino at Horsemen’s Park in Omaha. It has yet to officially announce a casino at Atokad in South Sioux City.
