STRICTLY BUSINESS: 568 SBA LOANS: 2,912 NEW JOBS

The U.S. Small Business Administration's primary lending programs hit record levels in FY1996 of $11.9 billion in loan guarantees, financing more than 64,000 small businesses across the country.

During the 1996 fiscal year, the SBA District office at St. Louis approved 568 loans totaling $98.2 million in Eastern Missouri and creating 2,912 new jobs in 54 counties.

These totals are down from the 867 loans and $116.8 million guaranteed during fiscal year 1995.

SBA helps new and growing businesses meet financial needs, counsels small companies with problems and helps small businesses to acquire government contracts.

A total of 237 loans, totalling $31.1 million were made to new businesses in Eastern Missouri. The remainder of the loans were for expansions to existing businesses.

Forty-six loans were approved in 10 Southeast Missouri counties, representing $5.2 million and accounting for almost 200 new jobs. Seventeen of the loans were for Cape Girardeau businesses, totalling $2.4 million and creating 88 new jobs.

Southeast Missouri loans

Other loans in Southeast Missouri includes six in Butler County, $501,500, 27 new jobs; one in Dunklin County, $20,000, no new jobs; four in Mississippi County, $206,000, seven new jobs; 10 in Scott County, $1.5 million, 48 new jobs; four in Stoddard County, $194,000, 17 new jobs; one each in New Madrid ($10,000) and Ste. Genevieve County ($110,000 and eight new jobs).

The SBA will help businesses acquire loans up to $1.4 million, and has had good cooperation from banking officials.

One of the popular SBA loans is the 504 loan, which calls for a 10 percent equity by the small business. The banks will loan up to 50 percent of the amount needed, and the SBA will sell debentures for the other 40 percent.

In response to the small-business community's demand for easier access to business information, the SBA is on the Internet. Its home page may be accessed at http://www.sbaonline.sba.gov.

Top 10 SBA lenders

Boatmen's National Bank of St. Louis heads the Small Business Administration list of top 10 lending partners in the number of SBA guaranteed loan approvals to small businesses in the St. Louis Eastern Missouri District during the fiscal year ending Sept. 30.

The top 10 lending partners account for more than 36 percent, or $26.9 million in 210 transactions, of all the loan guarantees extended by SBA during 1996 in the 54-county area.

Boatmen's National Bank of St. Louis has loaned more than $4.4 million in 65 SBA transactions.

Other banks and amounts of SBA loans: Mercantile Bank, $2.3 million in 25 transactions; First Bank, $1.8 million, 25 transactions; Commerce Bank, $3.9 million, 23 transactions; Magna Bank, $3.9 million, 15 transactions; Allegiant Bank, $2.3 million, 13 transactions; Boatmen's Bank of Mid-Missouri, $2 million, 12 transactions; The Money Store Investment Corp., $3 million, 12 transactions; Union Planters Bank-Columbia, $2.3 million, 10 transactions; and The Central Trust Bank-Jefferson City, $1.6 million, 10 transactions.

New wine introduced

River Ridge Winery has released its 1995 "Serendipity" Missouri table wine for sale.

The new wine, said winery spokesman Jerry Smith, is a blend of three white French grapes, and has become the winery's "signature" dry white wine.

River Ridge Winery is located 2 miles north of Commerce, Mo.

Boyd Gaming in Illinois

Boyd Gaming Corp. has to like admission totals of the past few months at Par-A-Dice Riverboat Casino in East Peoria, Ill.

The latest figure show more than 218,000 visitors in November, up 36 percent from the 160,000 admissions of the same month a year ago. Admissions have been up from 20 to 35 percent each of the past three months.

Boyd Gaming, headquartered in Las Vegas, and with operations at Kansas City, Mo ., Tunica County, Miss., and in the New Orleans area of Louisiana, is the new owner-operator of the Par-A-Dice Casino, since Dec. 3, when the Illinois Gaming Board approve Boyd's gaming license and purchase of the casino.

Par-A-Dice started operations in Illinois in November of 1991. During the first full year of operations, the company reported 1.2 million admissions. That grew to 1.8 million in 1994, and just shy of 2 million in 1995.

Gambling revenues down

Illinois riverboat casino revenues last month dropped more than 13 percent from the November of 1995, according to reports released Thursday by the Illinois Gaming Board.

The gambling boats' adjusted gross revenues totaled nearly $85 million last month. During the same period a year ago, their adjusted gross revenues were more than $98 million.

Casino Queen of East St. Louis and Grand Victoria in Elgin were the only boats to gain increases in receipts over the year before. Grand Victoria revenues of $18.9 million were up 6.5 percent from the previous November's $17.7 million. Casino Queen recorded a 2.6 percent increase, with $11 million, compared to $10.7 the year before.

Admissions were up in November, about one-half of 1 percent, from 2,014,701 in November of 1995 to 2,020,689 last month. Recording the largest increase in admission was Par-A-Dice, which boarded more than 50,000 admissions in November of 1995, up 36 percent from a year ago.

Casino Queen and the Grand Victoria were down slightly in admission, but each boarded more than 319,000 visitors last month.

Illinois' southernmost riverboat casino, Players International at Metropolis, reported decreases both in revenues and admissions. Players reported 158,338 admissions last month, down 11.6 percent from the same months a year ago. Revenues were $6,3 million compared to 7.1 million a year ago, down 12.9 percent.

Although Players' admissions are down, the casino is still attracting about 5,300 admissions a day.

Illinois casino totals

November attendance and revenue for Illinois casinos:

-- Grand Victoria, Elgin,: 319,217, $18.9 million.

-- Harrah's North Star, Joliet: 195,648, $11.4 million.

-- Empress Casino, Joliet: 282,616, $10.8 million.

-- Hollywood Casino, Aurora: 297,714, $12.4 million.

-- Casino Queen, East St. Louis: 319,744, $11 million.

-- Par-A-Dice Riverboat, E. Peoria: 218,246, $7.4 million.

-- Alton Belle, Alton: 97,300, $5.2 million.

-- Players Riverboat, Metropolis: 158,388, $6.3 million.

-- Casino Rock Island: 49,500, $1.2 million.

-- Silver Eagle Casino, Dubuque 7,471: $164,000

Totals: 2,1 million visitors; $84,8 million.

Missouri casino results

The Missouri Gaming Commission may (or, may not) have some kind of announcement concerning new gambling licenses in January.

The Commission has met with casino operations and financial analysts over the past three months, gathering data and recommendations on feasibility of adding new sites in the state.

No announcements were made during the commission's most recent meeting last week.

Casino results have been down in Missouri in October (November results are not yet available in Missouri).

Station Casino St. Charles, however, increased its win to $11.5 million, up from the 10.9 million during the same period a year ago, and Harrah's in North Kansas City continued to dominate that metropolitan area's gambling market, with 14.1 million, up considerably over a year ago.

More is better for these two casinos. Harrah's added a second gambling boat at its location recently, and Station Casino has been operating with two boats more than a year. Harrah's recently established a state record for gambling revenue, winning $15.9 million in August from its customers.

The Admiral in downtown St. Louis recorded revenues of $5.7 million, and Boyd Gaming's Sam's Town recorded $5.2 million in revenues at Kansas City.

Missouri casino revenues

-- Harrah's North Star, North Kansas City: $14.1 million.

-- Casino St. Charles: $11.5 million.

-- Argosy, Riverside: $5.7 million.

-- Admiral, St. Louis: $5.7 million.

-- Sam's Town, Kansas City: $5.2 million.

-- Casino Aztar, Caruthersville: $1.7 million.

-- Frontier Casino, St. Joseph: $1.6 million.

Totals: 1.6 million visitors, $40.8 million.

B. Ray Owen is business editor for the Southeast Missourian.