Penn National Gaming recently announced it will close the Resorts Casino Tunica on June 30, due to increasing competition and decreasing revenues. It will be the third casino to close in Tunica County, Mississippi since 2014, leaving only six casinos in the area that prospered from gambling revenue in the 1990s.
Penn National Senior Vice President of Regional Operations Al Britton said, “With our acquisition of Resorts Casino as part of the 2-property deal, we knew we were acquiring an aging barge in need of significant capital improvements. While we did everything in our control to keep the property profitable over the last two years, increased competition from recent gaming expansion in Arkansas continues to drive the property’s business volumes lower.”
Penn National acquired what is now 1st Jackpot and Resorts in March 2017 for $44 million. Officials said the company will try to find jobs for the 200 Resorts employees at 1st Jackpot and its other Tunica property, Hollywood Casino Tunica. Penn National leases the properties from Gaming and Leisure Properties Inc.
After Caesars Entertainment closed Tunica Roadhouse in January, Resorts was the smallest Tunica casino in terms of slots and table games. Caesars closed the massive Harrah’s Tunica Hotel & Casino in 2014 when the company was in bankruptcy.
When gambling was legalized in 1992, Tunica County boomed as the second-largest gambling destination outside Las Vegas and Atlantic City. Casino employment peaked at 13,000 jobs in 2001, with less than 5,000 now. In 2006, Tunica casinos took in more than $1.2 billion in revenue. It has steadily declined since then but recently began to rise following legalized sports betting in Mississippi.
Gambling competition is about to intensify since Arkansas voters approved a referendum allowing four full-fledged casinos, including one at Southland Gaming & Racing in nearby West Memphis, which won $222 million from gamblers in the 12 months ended June 30, up more than 50 percent since 2014. In January, owners Delaware North announced a $250 million expansion of Southland.
