Indiana has had riverboat casinos in operation ever since 1995. But now the Hoosier State has its first land-based casino in the Evansville Tropicana Casino.
The $50 million complex was unveiled this week at an official ceremony. And many people showed up to sample the new casino’s 1,000 slot machines, 30 table games, poker room, restaurants, and entertainment lounge.
Tropicana Manager Calls Casino Opening “Huge Weight Lifted”
Evansville was the site of Indiana’s first riverboat casino in 1995. And town officials are now happy to be the state’s first land-based casino location too.
Casino General Manager John Chaszar was on hand during the opening ceremony. And he sounded relieved that everything went off without a hitch.
“It’s a huge weight lifted off our shoulders,” Chaszar told 14 News Evansville.
“People asked me yesterday, ‘Are you excited?’ It’s like a vacation, I am not excited until I actually get there, and I am here. It is tremendous. It is just amazing collaborative effort. I am just truly, truly, truly excited.”
Visitors Pleased with Evansville Tropicana Casino
Patricia Eatman, one of the visitors on the casino’s opening night, said that she liked how much more spacious the new land-based casino is compared to the riverboat version.
Lieutenant Governor Suzanne Crouch is pleased that the state has begun transferring its riverboat casinos to land in an effort to compete with nearby states.
And the city of Evansville anticipates a large number of new visitors thanks to the Tropicana Casino. Lloyd Winnecke, Major of Evansville, said that they’re budgeting for a $12 million cash stream within the next year.
“We took a very conservative approach to gaming budgeting for next year, in fact we budgeted it to be flat, but we anticipate it will be up,” said Winnecke.
It’s guaranteed that the 1,000 slot machines will play a large role in generating cash for both the casino and town.