Gaming and Leisure Properties to fund Belle of Baton Rouge’s move and renovation in Louisiana
GLPI has agreed to provide up to $111m in funding for the move and hotel renovation.
US.- Gaming and Leisure Properties (GLPI) has agreed to provide up to $111m in funding to Queen Casino & Entertainment for the move to land and hotel renovation of Belle of Baton Rouge in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The total costs for the new on-land venue are expected to exceed $141m, with the riverboat casino continuing to operate throughout the construction period.
GLPI will own the new Belle of Baton Rouge property and lease its operations to Queen Casino Entertainment at a rate that will increase by 9 per cent a year.
GLPI chairman and CEO Peter Carlino said: “Building on the success of our landside move funding at The Queen Baton Rouge, we have agreed to provide funding for the hard costs related to Queen Casino & Entertainment Inc.‘s landside move at The Belle. Queen Casino & Entertainment has proven its ability to leverage a fresh, new product to grow the overall gaming market and we expect this project to follow a similar path.”
Queen Casino & Entertainment CEO Terry Downey added: “We are extremely pleased with the Queen’s performance since its grand reopening in August 2023, thanks in large part to GLPI’s partnership. Their depth of expertise and project management through the entire process have enabled us to exceed our financial, operational, and customer focused goals at the Queen.
“As we now turn our attention to The Belle, we look forward to realizing similar operational upside from this latest move landside. In particular, the proven success at the Queen and the synergies made possible by our operating model between the Queen and The Belle set the stage for success. We appreciate GLPI’s continued partnership in the growth of our business and look forward to providing our players with another fully refreshed casino destination.”
Illinois casino revenue reaches $136.6m in April
Illinois’ 15 casinos generated $136.6m in revenue in April, down 10.3 per cent compared to March’s total ($152.3m). Fourteen of the casinos saw their revenue dip month-on-month.
Rivers Casino posted $42.2m, down 11.6 per cent, Grand Victoria Casino $12.4 in, down 8.01 per cent, Harrah’s Joliet Casino & Hotel $10.6m, down 13.3 per cent and Bally’s Chicago $10.3m, down 6.98 per cent. Harrah’s Metropolis Casino was the only property to see revenue rise, reaching $5.5m, a 2.9 per cent increase. Casinos paid $31m in state and local taxes.
See also: Gaming and Leisure Properties acquires three casinos
