Bob Sheldon, vice president and general manager of Hollywood Casino at Kansas Speedway, recently told the Unified Government Board of Commissioners of Wyandotte County and Kansas City, Kansas that Kansas Entertainment, parent company of the casino, will proceed with building a hotel, under an earlier development agreement with the board. An October 5 groundbreaking is planned for the hotel, which will be built at or adjacent to the casino near I-70 and I-435.
By announcing the hotel construction, Kansas Entertainment dodged a penalty of 1 percent of the gaming revenues, estimated at about $1.3 million a year. In February, the board extended the construction deadline and also said the penalty would be waived if the decision to build a hotel was made by May 1.
In a letter to the board, Sheldon wrote, “Consistent with the Unified Government/Kansas Entertainment Development agreement, I am pleased to report that the Kansas Entertainment Board has resolved to authorize me to provide notice of our readiness to commence the development of the Hollywood Casino hotel. We will be working with staff to coordinate the next steps.”
