On November 15, the Mississippi Gaming Commission will hold a hearing in Long Beach about site approval for a proposed casino project across from Long Beach Harbor. Developer Jim Parrish hopes to build a 40,000 square foot casino on property he owns north of Highway 90 on the site of a former K-Mart. Long Beach banned casinos for many years but recently passed a law that allows them, resulting in Parrish’s plan.
Gaming Commission rules also would require a 300-room hotel and fine dining restaurant. In addition, the site must be within 800 feet of the shoreline.
Long Beach Mayor George Bass said, “Once this step is made then we have a legal site, one way or the other we’re approved for. That’s what we’re looking for.”
Bass added, “We have a design review here where the look of the building has to fit. A Key West theme, something like that we could put down here that goes with the harbor and our city. We have to make sure we make the best deal with them. Get our percentages right on our revenue that is going to benefit not only the city, but we have the school district that could benefit from it.”
