Illinois City Reportedly Trying to Woo Boyd Gaming With Land-Based Casino Incentives

Posted on: September 10, 2024, 10:21h. 

Last updated on: September 10, 2024, 10:26h.

Devin O'Connor @CasinoorgDevinO Read More
Expertise: Asia Pacific Gaming, Commercial Gaming, Legislation, Politics.

Las Vegas-based Boyd Gaming has operated the Par-A-Dice Hotel Casino in East Peoria, Ill., for 28 years. Local officials in neighboring Peoria are reportedly hoping to lure Boyd to the west side of the Illinois River for a new brick-and-mortar property.

Illinois casino Par-A-Dice riverboat Boyd Gaming
The Par-A-Dice riverboat in Illinois is a short walk from the resort’s hotel. The casino in East Peoria, Ill., is owned and operated by Boyd Gaming. (Image: Boyd Gaming)

WMBD Radio obtained communications between Peoria Mayor Rita Ali and East Peoria Mayor John Kahl through a Freedom of Information Act request that provides insight into Peoria’s attempts to bring Boyd into its city limits.

I am most disappointed to learn that you and your fellow officials in Peoria are doing your best to force a business organization to relocate from a neighboring community to yours,” Kahl wrote Ali.

Both mayors declined to comment in response to the WMBD Radio report. Boyd Gaming officials also did not respond.

WMBD Radio added that Peoria recently presented Boyd with a proposal that includes numerous economic incentives should the company decide to invest in a land-based casino in the city.

Par-A-Dice is a riverboat with 202 hotel guestrooms, three restaurants and bars, and a 26,116-square-foot casino floor fitted with 550 slot machines, 18 live dealer table games, and a FanDuel Sportsbook.

Casino Clause

When Illinois legalized commercial riverboat gambling in 1990, Peoria and East Peoria partnered to bring one of the casino licenses to the Central Illinois region.

The terms specified that the two cities would split a casino’s tax benefit equally. The pact also said any riverboat would dock on the eastern shore of the Illinois River, and if land-based casinos became allowed in the future, brick-and-mortar casinos would reside in Peoria.

In 2019, in part of the state’s gambling expansion to include a downtown Chicago integrated resort and five smaller casinos in the Windy City suburbs, Illinois lawmakers said the current 10 riverboats could move inland with approval from the Illinois Gaming Board and a $250K fee.

Ali defended her city’s actions in her email reply to Kahl.

We are not trying to force relocation,” she told Kahl. “We came to believe that Boyd Gaming may be interested in expanding to include a land-based casino. We wanted to make sure they understood our signed agreement.”

Ali said Peoria objects to a brick-and-mortar casino in East Peoria because it “violates a trust.”

Riverboat Has Seen Better Days

Par-A-Dice could certainly use some reenergizing, as the riverboat has seen visitation and gaming revenue drop significantly over the past several years.

In 2017, the Boyd Gaming riverboat counted 776,176 admissions to the casino floor. Players lost more than $78.9 million that year, which generated local taxes exceeding $4.7 million.

In 2019, Par-A-Dice welcomed fewer than 700K guests who generated gross gaming revenue of $72.8 million. That delivered a local tax benefit of about $4.3 million.

In 2022, admissions tumbled to 432,334, with GGR totaling $60.7 million and local taxes of $3.5 million. Last year, the casino saw admissions improve to 441,762 and gaming revenue rise to almost $63.5 million.

Despite the 2023 year-over-year gains, last year’s attendance remained 43% below 2017 and GGR remained suppressed by 19.5%.

Boyd Gaming acquired Par-A-Dice in April 1996 for $163 million. The sellers were the original group of local investors who built the riverboat casino and hotel that opened about three years earlier. Par-A-Dice was the second riverboat to open in Illinois following the Alton Belle, which is today the Argosy.

Illinois’ gaming law initially required riverboats to sail daily, but that condition was lifted in 1999.