Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers recently approved the Ho-Chunk Nation’s proposed casino and entertainment complex in Beloit. Evers said the project will create jobs to help the region recover from the economic stress of Covid-19. “As we work to bounce back from this pandemic, we must do everything we can to support economic development in communities across our state,” said Evers, who promised to approve the casino when he ran for governor in 2018.
The project will create more than 2,000 construction jobs and more than 1,500 long-term jobs. It will feature one of the state’s largest casinos, plus a 300-room hotel, more than 45,000 square feet of meeting and convention space, and a 40,000-square-foot indoor waterpark.
The U.S. Department of the Interior approved taking into trust 32 acres just north of the Illinois border for casino gaming. Under federal law, governors can approve or reject off-reservation casinos. Now the Interior Department must issue a final determination on taking the land into trust and Evers and the tribe must amend their gaming compact.
Ho-Chunk Nation Vice President Karena Thundercloud said the tribe is “incredibly excited” about the governor’s approval. “We look forward to the day when we can celebrate everybody who is helping this project along,” she said. Beloit City Council President Regina Dunkin added, “An entertainment destination of this magnitude is a win for the entire Greater Beloit region and will provide job opportunities for our residents.”
The Ho-Chunk tribe operates other Wisconsin casinos in Nekoosa, Baraboo and Black River Falls. Its state gaming compact allows one more. The Beloit facility has been planned for more than 20 years, with local voters approving the project in a 1999 referendum. The tribe bought the land in 2009 and has been seeking official approvals to build a casino there since 2012.
Some who are not celebrating Evers’ approval are Illinois state Senator Dave Syverson and others in Rockford Illinois, which lies 20 miles directly south of Beloit. Syverson warned in 2017 that a Ho-Chunk casino in Beloit would be a devastating economic blow to the city of Rockford, where officials have been working toward developing a casino for years.
