Kansas officials have given the final approval to the development for the Kansas Crossing casino in the southeast part of the state. The decision was made by the Kansas Racing and Gaming Commission at a meeting last Thursday, said Dennis McKinney, the Chairman of the Kansas Racing and Gaming Commission. Other members of the commission are Rochel Towle, Michelle Neis, and Don Browlee.
The decision came after a last-minute push by proponents of a rival casino project in Cherokee County tried to sway the Racing and Gaming Commission against approval. The two rival groups had lobbied for their developments over the past couple of years.
$70 Million Casino Project
Kansas Crossing is expected to cost $70 million to build. When complete, the complex will feature slot machines, table games, a 100-room hotel, and a 600-seat entertainment complex. The casino is expected to employ 300 people full-time.
Kansas Crossing is set for development south of Pittsburg, Kansas near the state boundary with Missouri. The casino is going to be within a short driving distance of Springfield, Branson, and Joplin in Missouri, along with Bentonville in Arkansas. Tulsa, Oklahoma is just a little further driving distance.
Southeastern Kansas Development
The casino is well-placed to draw many gamblers from Southwestern Missouri. While the Show-Me State has 13 tribal gaming casinos, those gaming venues are found either in the metropolian areas surrounding St. Louis and Kansas City or along the Mississippi River in the eastern portions of the state. An Isle of Capri casino exists in Boonville, but it is in the northern half of the state, between St. Louis and Kansas City.
For that reason, Kansas Crossing should have little competition for gamblers in the area. The development has been under consideration for the past couple of years, but a number of stumbling blocks stood in the way of approval. At various points, there was concern on the part of the developers whether Kansas Crossing would get proper approval, as some officials feared saturation of the market.
Third Casino in the State
The Kansas Crossing Group has a couple of other casinos in the state: one in Mulvane and one in Dodge City. Other developers have casinos in Horton, Mayetta, Powhattan, and White Cloud, along with two in the Kansas portions of Kansas City. Roughly half of the other gaming establishments are tribal casinos, owned by the Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation and the Sac & Fox Indians. Kansas Crossing will be the ninth casino in the state.
Carrie Tedore, who acts as spokeswoman for Kansas Crossing, said development on the project is set to begin in the next few days. Ms. Tedore said that McPherson Contractors Inc are gathering the workers and equipment to begin building the casino starting this summer.
Bruce Christenson Gave Thanks
Bruce Christenson, the chief investor and developer in the Kansas Crossing project, gave his thanks to the Gaming Commission. Christenson said via phone from his office in Houston, Texas, “We are grateful for approval today.”
Approval came after the Lottery Review Board last week called for gaming officials to approve the Pittsburg gaming development. Several Racing and Gaming commissioners said they would not vote against the Lottery Board’s recommendations, unless specific issues appeared in the vetting process. No major issues appeared, so the Commission chose the smaller project.
That is not as uncommon as one would think. While Massachusetts chose the $1.6 billion Wynn Resorts proposal over a $900 million Suffolk Downs/Mohegan Sun proposal last year, the state of New York preferred to award licenses to smaller, local developers when it announced three licenses in December 2014.
Rival Castle Rock Project
The emotions were not unanimously positive on hearing the news. In the last phase of the vetting process, 14 people associated with the Castle Rock casino proposal spoke before the Racing and Gaming Commission, calling on the commissioners to reject the project.
The Castle Rock Casino was a competing $147 million proposal planned for nearby Cherokee County. With the decision to approve Kansas Crossing, the Cherokee County project has little chance of being approved. Such a development would hurt business for both projects, so most people viewed the proposals as an either/or proposition.
Steve Vogel Said Criteria Was Not Followed
Steve Vogel, a Galena developer who was associated with the Castle Rock project, expressed displeasure at the news. When asked his opinion on the decision, Vogel told the Joplin Globe, “Why have criteria if you don’t follow it? I’m extremely disappointed. The state of Kansas is the loser here.”
