ST. LOUIS
An economic impact study for the Missouri Gaming Commission has determined that a plan to put a new casino in Cape Girardeau would be the best bet for the state.
The study released by the Gaming Commission on Friday favors Isle of Capri Corp.'s plan for
The Gaming Commission will look at the report and other factors in deciding who gets the next casino license. That decision could come at a meeting on Wednesday in Jefferson City, or the commission could decide not to issue a new license at all.
Cape Girardeau Mayor Harry Rediger, who has helped lead the effort to bring a casino to the town, did not return a phone message seeking comment.
The study looked at worst-case, average and best-case scenarios and was particularly focused on avoiding "cannibalization" of sales from other casinos. It found that the Casino Celebration plan in north St. Louis and the Paragon casino near Kansas City would both be more detrimental to neighboring casinos.
"In all three scenarios, Isle of Capri-Cape Girardeau generated the highest net new casino revenue and gaming taxes, new employment, and, overall Gross Domestic Product," the study found. Casino Celebration was second in all three scenarios.
Both St. Louis and Kansas City are home to several casinos. Cape Girardeau is about 100 miles south of St. Louis. The only other casino within a close drive is in the small town of Caruthersville in the Missouri Bootheel, about 85 miles south of Cape Girardeau.
"All of the applicants have submitted proposals for medium-sized facilities but only Isle of Capri is far enough from existing Missouri casinos to minimize cannibalization," the report found.
Isle of Capri, based in suburban St. Louis, is proposing a $125 million casino along the Mississippi River in Cape Girardeau.
The license became available this summer when the President Casino in St. Louis went out of business. Missouri law caps the number of casino licenses at 13.
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