LADY LUCK RAISES STAKES FOR CITY GAMING LICENSE; TWO GROUPS SUBMIT MILLION DOLLAR DEALS

The Boyd Group no longer is the only game in town when it comes to which company will operate a riverboat casino in Cape Girardeau.

Lady Luck Gaming Corp. of Las Vegas, which has incorporated as a Cape Girardeau company, Tuesday unveiled a $58.3 million riverboat casino and resort proposal to compete with the proposal offered last year by the Boyd Group.

The Lady Luck 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.

"It's a real exciting project, and certainly one of the most ambitious Lady Luck has proposed," said Rob Stillwell, director of public relations for the gaming company.

Lady Luck operates a casino in Central City, Colo., and three riverboat casinos in Mississippi. The company is developing plans for three other riverboat operations in Mississippi and one in Jefferson County Missouri.

On Tuesday, Cape Girardeau city officials opened riverboat gambling proposals from Lady Luck and the Boyd Group, the only two companies to submit plans to the city.

The city council has set a March 7 deadline for deciding which proposal it will recommend to the Missouri Gaming Commission. The commission has the final word on which company, if any, is issued a gaming license in Cape Girardeau.

The Boyd Group proposed a $51.1 million development that officials said is similar to plans the company unveiled last May.

The proposal includes a $24.8 million investment in a 1,350-passenger riverboat casino and $26.4 million in land-side 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.

The riverboat landing would be built in a "Victorian style" to match other properties in the downtown area. A "catwalk" to the boat would traverse the river's floodwall. At the boat, an adjustable floating dock would accommodate a 48- to 52-foot change in the river's depth.

Maunty Collins, senior vice-president and director of operations for the Boyd Group, said Tuesday that the complex has grown significantly in cost over the past eight months.

"There are some changes within the structure because our engineers have some additional information about the building and have learned more about the site," Collins said.

Collins said a restaurant and gift shop remain an important part of the proposal.

"I think people are going to want to come to an entertainment complex to eat and have fun, even if they don't ever ride the boat," he said.

Lady Luck proposes $22 million in its riverboat investment and another $36.3 million in land-side development.

The land-side complex would encompass nearly 100 acres along the Mississippi River from Morgan Oak Street south to Locust and LaCruz. The site would provide nearly a mile of access to the Cape Girardeau riverfront.

Daniel K. Bockert, senior vice president of Booker Associates Inc. -- the St. Louis engineering and architectural firm that developed Lady Luck's proposal, said the company also proposes renovations to the St. Vincent's Seminary.

"The main focal point is the existing seminary site, which we propose to turn into a visitors center," Bockert said.

He said Lady Luck will renovate the structure in a manner that will preserve is "historical significance."

"On the ground floor, we would have administrative offices," Bockert said. "The second floor would be a visitors center with space available for the city's Convention and Visitors Bureau.

"But one of the keys will be a historical museum in the building."

"When Lady Luck first saw the seminary property, it really captured their imagination," said Leah Christopher, a marketing representative for the gaming company. "They think it's a gem."

Other highlights of the proposal are the 120-slip marina, a harbor house, the golf course, and the hotel.

"Included with the hotel will be a high-tech electronic family-oriented facility," Bockert said. "For those who don't wish to game, there's a lot available."

A continuous trolley will intersect the facility and link it with the downtown area.

The Boyd Group estimates that its proposal will generate 800 jobs directly linked to the operation and another 800 secondary jobs related to businesses that service the boat and boat workers.

Christopher said Lady Luck's complex would generate 1,100 direct jobs and another 400 secondary jobs.

Between the two proposals, it's estimated that 1,800 to 2,300 persons would visit Cape Girardeau daily.

That's a figure that caught the attention of Chamber of Commerce President John Mehner.

"Even the lower of the two estimates is incredible," Mehner said. "From a chamber perspective, I can sell that to prospective businesses."

Boyd Group officials have estimated the city's share of the boat's revenue would total about $2.5 million annually.

Lady Luck estimates its proposal would garner the city more than $3.5 million annually in local revenues.

Part of that money comes from incentives other than the state-mandated, $1 per head tax earmarked for local governments.

"We're proposing a 50-cent admission fee in addition to the $1, which will be money given directly to the city and in excess of $500,000 annually," said Christopher.

Other contributions include $80,000 in up-front "seed money" and $25,000 annually for the museum, $50,000 annually to the city's park foundation, and a $100,000 annual contribution "earmarked for the community's needs and desires," Christopher added.

The Boyd Group has proposed a one-time $500,000 contribution to the park foundation.

The Boyd Group has purchased property along Main Street north of Broadway for its development, while Lady Luck officials said their company has options to either lease or purchase the site for its proposal.