Northwest Indiana casinos undergo impressive month

The gambling facilities in the state reported their best September since 2013 with US$77.4 million income.

US.- The Indiana Gaming Commission revealed this week that Northwest Indiana’s casinos experienced their best September in years as they totaled US$77.4 million of gaming income, a 4.3 percent rise over the same period last year.

According to the local commission, the results were driven by an increase of both slot machine play and table game. The latter posted a revenue increase of 4.3 percent to US$15.9 million, whilst slot revenue increased 1.9 percent to US$60.4 million. Matt Schuffert, Ameristar senior vice president and general manager, said that both volume and win were up, “and that’s a good sign,” NWI Times reported.

The state’s largest casino, Horseshoe Casino in Hammond, was the top scorer with US$33.9 million, a 7.2 percent increase. Dan Nita, senior vice president and general manager of the facility, said that the numbers represent five consecutive months of growth for Horseshoe. Moreover, Ameristar East Chicago was algo 3.5 percent up to US$17.1 million, whilst Michigan City’s Blue Chip was up 2.8 percent to US$13.7 million.

The good results were achieved despite a decrease of the number of customers entering Northwest Indiana casinos, the number approximately 1 percent down to 789k. Year-to-date through September gaming revenue was 1.2 percent down to US$713 million, but the numbers are due to a deficit created by a slow start in 2017.

Chicago area casinos experienced a collective growth of 3.7 percent but the results are not expected to be a long-term trend. Indiana’s 13 gambling facilities also experienced a 6.2 percent growth year-over-year through September, collecting US$188.5 million. Local casinos contributed US$3.9 million in admissions tax and US$26.9 million in wagering tax in September.