The Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission announced it will release a timeline for parties interested in submitting applications for a casino in Linn County, where the state’s second largest city, Cedar Rapids is located. Commission Chairperson Julie Andres said the action is being taken because the county passed a gaming referendum last November.
The commission previously denied Cedar Rapids a casino license twice before, in 2014 and 2017, concerned a casino there would cannibalize the market. But all of the commissioners who denied Cedar Rapids a license have cycled off the panel. And Cedar Rapids officials believe the casino could help fend off competition from Nebraska’s six horseracing tracks, where casino gambling recently was approved.
Cedar Rapids Mayor Tiffany O’Donnell said, “We checked a big box today, and the next step is to get the timeline. I’m most excited about that because the sooner we have that, the sooner the community can see the plans. And they are spectacular. A casino downtown or near downtown would allow us to accelerate our growth. It’s not the only solution but it definitely ignites progress. I’m a firm believer that development promotes more development. A casino the size and scale of this project would invite others to develop around it.”
Commissioner Daryl Olsen noted, “We feel like it’s our responsibility as a commission, Cedar Rapids passed a referendum, I think it would be the right thing for us to do to look at the timeline that we can look at those applications and then review those applications.”
Cedar Rapids has an agreement with a local investor group, Cedar Rapids Development Group, guaranteeing the city’s exclusive support through the license application process, but others still may apply. Peninsula Pacific Entertainment would operate the casino for Cedar Rapids Development Group.
P2E President Jonathan Swain said the commission finally recognizes that the citizens of Cedar Rapids have twice indicated they want a casino. Swain said, “I think they feel this responsibility as a commission to respect the vote of the citizens and the will of the Cedar Rapidians that voted for this. This is one of the best days of my year so far.”
Swain said the plans are “90 percent done,” adding O’Donnell is “pushing me to go big or go home. This project will be significantly larger, significantly better” compared with previous proposals. “Our whole motto during this process is set a new benchmark for gaming in Iowa. Our goal is to be the best casino in the state,” Swain said.
The agreement between P2E and the nonprofit Linn County Gaming Association calls for 8 percent of casino revenue to be set aside for local nonprofits.
