Posted on: December 17, 2024, 09:52h.
Last updated on: December 17, 2024, 09:58h.
The sixth and final casino Nebraska lawmakers and voters authorized through legislation and a statewide ballot referendum in 2020 is finally coming together.
Ho-Chunk Inc. and WarHorse Gaming, subsidiaries of the Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska, announced on Monday plans to overhaul the former Atokad Downs racecourse into a racino destination.
The $50 million blueprint includes a new 5/8 mile racetrack and grandstand just south of Interstate 129 and 152nd Street at C Avenue. The property is currently farmland and is about 1.2 miles east of the shuttered Atokad Downs track that operated from 1956 until 2012.
It will be a modest casino by most standards,” said Ho-Chunk CEO Lance Morgan.
Morgan explained that the goal is to return racing to South Sioux City and bring games of chance to the town, but not at the cost of hampering business at the tribe’s WinnaVegas Casino Resort in nearby Sloan, Iowa. Dubbed WarHorse South Sioux City, the plan is to deliver a boutique gaming experience to complement parimutuel wagering at the racetrack.
“We don’t want to hurt WinnaVegas,” Morgan explained. “Our study shows that most of the revenue with come from Hard Rock [Sioux City, IA].”
Cornhusker Gaming Expansion
Nebraska’s 2020 commercial gaming bill was designed to rejuvenate the state’s horse racing industry, which was on life support, and to create new state tax revenue that is to be used to lessen property taxes on homeowners. The casino law permits gambling, inclusive of slot machines, table games, and sports betting, at licensed horse racetracks where live racing is held annually.
The tribe is additionally the casino development partner of the Nebraska Horsemen’s Benevolent and Protective Association (NHBPA), which owns horse racetracks in Omaha and Lincoln. WarHorse Casino Lincoln’s permanent facility opened last month. WarHorse Casino Omaha opened in August.
The Omaha location has nearly 800 slots, 19 live dealer table games, and a sportsbook. Lincoln features 830 slots, 10 tables, and sports betting. WarHorse is also planning to bring a 200-room hotel to the Lincoln facility.
In South Sioux City, the tribe says future development possibilities could include a larger gaming space, a hotel, and an events center. In the meantime, Dakota County and South Sioux City will benefit by collecting 25% of the casino revenue tax.
It will be an additional revenue source to invest in schools and infrastructure in the community,” Morgan said.
Construction is to begin in the spring of 2025.
Atokad No More
Ho-Chunk is rebranding its Nebraska racetracks to its WarHorse brand. Horsemen’s Park in Omaha and the Lincoln Race Course identities are no more. The tribe is also folding on the Atokad Downs name for its new facility in South Sioux City.
Atokad is Dakota spelled backward. The track’s name paid homage to the facility’s host county of Dakota.
After the NHBPA shuttered Atokad Downs in 2012, Ho-Chunk acquired the property in the hopes that Nebraska would consider legalizing slot machines at state racetracks as several other states had done to revitalize their horsemen. Though it took eight years, the tribe got its way in 2020.
Ho-Chunk helped bankroll the 2020 casino referendum with cash contributions of about $6 million. The tribe was the primary funder of the “Keep the Money in Nebraska” campaign.
