Nearly 25 years since the debut of riverboat gambling in Iowa’s Quad Cities, the Rhythm City Casino in Davenport and the Isle of Capri Casino in Bettendorf soon will move to land-based facilities. The projects represent a total investment of 0 million and more than 400,000 square feet in new construction in Scott County. The Bettendorf and Davenport casinos will be the third and fourth land-based casinos in the area, following Jumer’s Casino & Hotel in Rock Island, opened in 2008, and Wild Rose Casino & Resort in Clinton.
Just weeks following a June 4 groundbreaking, rain stalled work at the site at the Interstates 80 and 74 interchange. But an August dry spell has picked it right back up as evidenced by the skeleton of a hotel now towering over the 40 acres.
Dan Kehl, owner of the $110 million Rhythm City, said, “We’ve watched these buildings come out of the ground” at Interstates 80 and 74. The project features a six-story hotel, and a grand hall connecting it with a single-story complex housing the casino, buffet and event center. Up to 200 construction workers have been on site at any given time, and that number will double in January and February with drywall, concrete, electric and plumbing workers. The 320,000 square foot venue is scheduled to open May 19, 2016.
Ground was broken on May 13 at Isle of Capri, Iowa’s future largest casino resort. The construction will connect and fill in the current courtyard linking the property’s two tower hotels. They’ll share a common lobby area and offer a total of 514 rooms, 251 of which recently were renovated for $8.5 million.
The completed property will offer a 35,000 square foot gaming floor with 975 slots, plus two restaurants and a bar. The décor features Iowa industries, incorporating themes of manufacturing, production, machinery and farming.
Isle spokeswoman Jill Alexander said, “We appreciate the hard work put forth by all of the tradespeople who worked on the hotel and those who are now working on the landbased casino.”
Meanwhile, three members of the Iowa House and three members of the Iowa Senate will serve on a legislative interim commission that will study licensing a tobacco-free casino in Cedar Rapids and present a recommendation, if any, to the 2016 Iowa Legislature.
During the 2015 session, state Senator Wally Horn, a member of the committee, unsuccessfully introduced a bill that would have required the Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission to issue a license to Cedar Rapids for a tobacco-free casino. In April 2014, the IRGC denied a license for a Linn County casino, citing studies showing it would cannibalize nearby casinos.
