LADY LUCK GETS LICENSE RENEWAL IN MISSISSIPPI

Lady Luck Gaming Corp. learned this week that the Mississippi Gaming commission has granted Lady Luck Natchez the first Mississippi gambling license renewal.

In March 1992, the Natchez casino became the first riverboat casino in Mississippi to receive a license.

"We are pleased with the gaming commission's decision and are eager to continue our relationship with Natchez," said Andrew Tompkins, Lady Luck chairman. "This operation has been an excellent demonstration of how a community and a gaming organization can work successfully together."

Lady Luck Natchez, the company's first riverboat, is a showboat-theme casino that resembles the historic J.M. White Mississippi riverboat that docked at Natchez in the late 1800s. It is a three-story dockside facility with 14,300 square feet of gambling space.

In another motion by the Mississippi Gaming Commission, Lady Luck received site approval for Lady Luck Vicksburg, a $45 million project.

The facility will feature a 30,000-square-foot casino and an initial 180-room hotel. The master plan calls for an additional 360 rooms, Tompkins said.

"We believe that we will have the best resort location in Vicksburg," added Tompkins. "Lady Luck will be adjacent to the Interstate 20 bridge, a major east-west thoroughfare that connects Dallas and Atlanta, making it the most visible site from the Interstate."

Lady Luck Gaming Corp. develops, owns and operates casinos in Natchez, Tunica and Biloxi, Miss., and Central City, Colo. The corporation currently is developing and exploring several sites in emerging gaming jurisdictions including Indiana, Mississippi, and Missouri. Lady Luck Gaming, headquartered in Las Vegas, Nev., employs about 3,000 people nationwide, with nearly 2,000 of those employees based in Mississippi.