Casino plans $85 million expansion

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Isle of Capri Casinos Inc. has announced plans for an $85 million expansion and upgrading project of its Kansas City casino.

The city council and Missouri Gaming Commission must approve the plans announced Tuesday, which would add about 400 slot machines, space for parking, restaurants, a special events arena and a new entrance.

The expansion would give the casino 2,150 seats at table games and slot machines, moving it ahead of the Argosy Riverside's 2,037 into third place in the four-casino Kansas City market.

Ameristar Kansas City Casino and Hotel, the market leader, has 3,647 gaming positions and Harrah's North Kansas City Casino & Hotel is second with 2,203.

Isle of Capri saw its share of the Kansas City gambling market drop nearly 2 percentage points last year to 13.7 percent.

"We think the changes we've got planned will really help reposition this property in the market," Gregory Guida, senior vice president for development and legal affairs for Biloxi, Miss.-based Isle of Capri Casinos, told members of the Kansas City Port Authority.

He projected a spring groundbreaking and 12 to 15 months of construction if the plan is approved.

The expansion does not include a hotel, which will leave Kansas City as the only location in the company's growing chain that doesn't have one either in use or under construction. Tim Hinkley, president and chief operating officer, said the company wants to add lodging at some point.

"It's a step-by-step process," he said. "This is the first phase. There's no talk of hotel right now, but we're bullish on the marketplace."

Isle of Capri bought the former Flamingo casino from the Hilton Hotels Corp. in 2000 for $33.5 million and spent $15 million on a makeover.

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On the Net:

http://www.isleofcapricasinos.com

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Information from: The Kansas City Star, http://www.kcstar.com