Tag: Gaming

Gaming revenues up at Hollywood Casino

Hollywood Casino reported gaming revenues were up about 31 percent in February, according to a report at the Kansas Lottery Commission meeting Wednesday afternoon.

Gaming revenues at Hollywood Casino in Wyandotte County were $12.17 million in the month of February, according to Keith Kocher, director of program assurance and integrity for the Kansas Lottery.

That compares to gaming revenues of $9.27 million in February 2021 and $13.9 million in February 2020 at Hollywood Casino, according to state figures.

Admissions were up 20 percent in February 2022 as compared to February 2021, according to a written report by Rick Skinner, vice president and general manager of Hollywood Casino, to the Kansas Racing and Gaming Commission.

The casino has had several promotions in February, and upcoming promotions are a 10-year anniversary $200,000 drawing on March 19; a $700 every seven minutes promotion on March 26; and a Sporting KC $200,000 kick picks promotion in March, according to the report.

The casino is located at 777 Hollywood Casino Blvd.

The Unified Government receives 3 percent of the gaming revenues from the casino, and the state receives 22 percent of the gaming revenues.

Boot Hill Casino in Dodge City, Kansas, had its best February ever at $4 million, as did Kansas Crossing Casino at Pittsburg, Kansas, at $3.4 million, Kocher said.

Gaming revenues continued down at Kansas Star Casino in Mulvane, Kansas, at $12.9 million, he said. Revenues were down around 4 percent this month, and admissions were down about 8 percent.

In February 2021 the Kansas Star casino had $13.5 million in gaming revenue, and in February 2020 it reported $16.2 million.

Kocher said the Mulvane casino, which is near Wichita, has competition now from a Wyandotte Nation tribal casino in Park City, Kansas. The CrossWinds casino opened in March 2021. The two casinos are about 30 minutes apart.

In other discussion, Stephen Durrell, lottery executive director, said quarantine numbers at the four state-owned casinos had gone down dramatically in recent weeks.

Durrell said he kept hearing rumors there would be legislation introduced on sports betting, but he had not seen anything filed as of earlier today. It is possible a bill will be introduced later, according to Durrell, although he had not seen a current version of it.

Woodlands, smoking at casino amendments defeated on Senate floor

Two amendments affecting gaming in Wyandotte County went down to defeat on Tuesday night in the Kansas Senate.

Sen. Steve Fitzgerald, R-5th Dist., offered an amendment on the floor to a southeast Kansas gaming bill that would change the state’s share of slots revenue at the racetrack  from 40 percent to 22 percent, the same rate paid by state casinos.

Several votes on the amendment were taken, and the final 19-19 vote on his amendment did not pass.

Sen. David Haley, D-4th Dist., proposed an amendment that would eliminate smoking on the casino floors.

Currently, smoking is allowed on the state casino floors, although smoking has been banned in most other public places including restaurants. However, Missouri casinos still allow smoking.

While both amendments lost, the southeast Kansas gaming bill passed 28-10. It reduced the total amount of money investors would need to pay the state.

Another amendment to the bill, by Sen. Tom Holland, would have allowed veterans organizations to have three electronic gaming machines, but the amendment was withdrawn.

House Bill 2272 eliminated an earlier version about industrial revenue bond property tax abatement and added language on gaming that would drop the amount of investment required in infrastructure in a southeast Kansas casino from $225 million to $50 million. The privilege fee required by the casino manager to the state was dropped from $25 million to $5.5 million.