The South Dakota Senate last week voted 22-13 against a proposal that would have put a proposed casino complex in Yankton before the state voters. The proposal would have amended the state constitution.
Supporters say that the “Port Yankton” project would be a lure to tourism, however South Dakota’s gaming tribes opposed the proposal. The historic city already attracts about a million visitors a year.
The proposal isn’t completely dead. Yankton Area Progressive Growth could collect the required 30,000 signatures, 10 percent of registered voters, to put it on the 2020 ballot. The goal is to build a casino complex with a hotel, convention center, entertainment and dining.
A spokesman for the group, Dan Specht, told KTIV, “This is a South Dakota Initiative, it isn’t just a Yankton initiative. It means additional revenue for veteran services in South Dakota. It means additional tourism to the southeast part of South Dakota and it means jobs and it means another way to help Yankton grow.”
