Louisiana casino revival

A Robinsonville, Mississippi casino entertainment company is expanding south into Louisiana after getting the green light to buy a dormant casino which it intends to give a $200m facelift.

The abandoned 26-acre property is the former Diamond Jacks Casino in Bossier City. On Thursday, the Louisiana Gaming Commission (LGC) approved the sale of the property to Foundation Gaming Group, which owns and operates WaterView Casino & Hotel in Vicksburg and the Fitz Casino & Hotel in Tunica.

a great project for the market and for the community.”

According to the Shreveport Times, the new owner believes the renovation and opening of a rebranded casino “will be a great project for the market and for the community.”

Bucking the barge casino trend

Foundation’s purchase plan spells the end of the property rolling dice on a riverboat, with the site’s shuttered water-based location up for sale.

The departing riverboat will signal a new era in northwest Louisiana. In its place, Foundation will build the first land-based casino in the region. The new 47,000-square-foot casino will compete with the state’s 14 riverboat casinos when it opens in December 2024.

LGC chairman Ronnie Johns expressed a sense of relief in the agreed deal, saying on the day of the deal that it was what “we’ve been waiting for a long time.” Johns also vouched for the new owner, saying the Mississippi firm “has an impressive plan.”

In February 2022, the Louisiana Gaming Control Board (LGCB) gave Diamond Jacks Casino’s owner Peninsula Pacific Entertainment 60 days to sell the Bossier City property. At that time, Peninsula said it was in talks with Foundation over a sale agreement.

Out to make an impact

Foundation’s chief operations and marketing officer Les McMackin gave a hint of his firm’s ambitions when he stated “we get to start fresh.” He added:

We’re going to bring something new and different to the market that we draw folks in as a destination.”

According to the Shreveport Times, the casino project has the full backing of the Bossier City Mayor, the Bossier Parish Police Jury, and legislators like Democratic state Rep. Sam Jenkins.

With demolition of Diamond Jacks scheduled for early 2023, Jenkins, whose District 2 is in the new casino’s locale, said “improvements to the facility and the expectation of jobs and tourism are welcomed news.” He added that he was pleased to learn of the casino project “returning to help the economy of Shreveport-Bossier.”