GAMING FIRMS TOUT PROPOSALS BEFORE CHAMBER

Docking locations, riverboat safety, hiring policies and increased traffic in downtown Cape Girardeau were among topics addressed by representatives of two riverboat gambling companies before a standing-room-only crowd at the Cape Girardeau Chamber of Commerce First Friday Coffee.

Boyd Gaming Group and Lady Luck Gaming Corp. officials squared off in a final public meeting at the Drury Lodge to discuss the merits of their proposals for the Mississippi riverfront.

Less than 72 hours remain before the Cape Girardeau City Council makes a decision Monday night on a riverboat gambling partner.

By the roll of the dice, Lady Luck was first to review its proposal to members and guests at the gathering.

"We've done it before," said Lear Christopher, communications manager for Lady Luck. "We have three riverboat casinos operating in the state of Mississippi and one land-based casino outside of Las Vegas. We know how to market outside the state of Nevada."

Lady Luck's $58.3 million riverboat casino and resort proposal includes a 1,500-passenger riverboat casino, a 200-room hotel and night club, a nine-hole golf course, a 27-hole miniature golf course, batting cages, a living history museum, a marina and an open-air downtown market and festival site. The plan also calls for renovations at St. Vincent's Seminary.

"We'll be cleaning up about a mile of the riverfront south of the Mississippi River bridge," said Gary Heisel, project coordinator for Lady Luck. "I'm familiar with the Cape Girardeau area, and this project is a doable one."

The Boyd Group has proposed a $51.1 million development that includes a $24.8 million investment in a 1,350-passenger riverboat casino and $26.4 million in land development. The riverfront development is a parking and entrance facility that would take up a large portion of Main Street from Broadway to Park Drive.

Also included in the project are two restaurants, gift shops and remodeling of the old Buckner-Ragsdale building.

"I've been in this area off and on about a year," said Dan Davis, a Boyd consultant. "I think everybody here is aware of our proposal. We want to show the rest of the Boyd Co."

Before showing a seven-minute film, Davis said the Boyd Gaming Corp. had six operations in Las Vegas and four new operations under way -- two in Mississippi, one in Missouri and another in Louisiana -- in addition to the Cape Girardeau proposal.

"Boyd employs more than 8,000 people, and we hope to see that grow to 15,000 by the end of the year," said Davis.

Following 10-minute presentations by the two companies, a question-answer session was held. Questions concerned alternate locations, traffic and employment.

"We have an alternate site," said Heisel. "We can move south to the site of the proposed hotel." Lady Luck originally proposed docking at the foot of St. Vincent's Seminary.

"We have a large access area along the river, from Broadway to the old shoe factory site," said Boyd. "We feel that somewhere within that distance, we will find a spot that will be to Corps of Engineers specifications."

The Corps will not make any decisions until a request for permit is made. "If we're selected we will make that request," said Davis. "Meanwhile, we have talked with riverboat pilots and feel we can find a site within our boundaries."

Both companies said they would be hiring from within a 40-mile radius of Cape Girardeau, and both have agreed to work with the city in traffic areas.

"We're probably talking about 1,000 cars a day," said Davis. "This is spread out over 24 hours a day. We have people here working on a traffic plan now, which should be ready by Monday."