The maiden voyage of the Pride of Texas Casino cruise ship, scheduled for this month, has been postponed once again. President and Chief Executive Officer Vidal Conde said, “We’re looking at having the ship here within the next 60 days, at least by the first quarter of 2016.” Originally set for October 2014, the ship’s launch has been postponed more than once. More than 1,000 tickets were sold for its January debut.
Conde said he hopes the 155-foot vessel, the former Jacks or Better cruise ship, will sail out of Aransas Pass in Corpus Christi every week. He said he still needs to secure all of the investors. “We’re asking for a simple ‘welcome letter’ so that we can start beginning the permitting process with the Corps of Engineers to obtain the proper permitting on our venue there in Aransas Pass.” However, local media said Conde has not yet submitted any application to obtain a permit to lease Corpus Christi Marina. Aransas Pass City Manager Sylvia Carrillo said, “I haven’t even seen a site plan to be able to tell you about a prospective construction date or anything like that.”
The Texas Treasure Casino Cruise was the last cruise ship to operate out of Port Aransas, in 2008. Currently under Texas law only a lottery, parimutuel wagering, charitable bingo, pulltabs and raffles are allowed. In addition, the Kickapoo Lucky Eagle Casino in Eagle Pass, owned and operated by the Kickapoo Traditional Tribe of Texas, opened in 1996 and offers Class II gambling. Last October the National Indian Gaming Commission ruled the federally recognized Ysleta del Sur Pueblo, also known as the Tigua tribe, and the Alabama-Coushatta tribe could reopen their casinos, which were forced to close in 2002.
