There was an interesting article in the NY Times Business section called Onshore
Casinos Approved in Mississippi. In the past, gaming laws in Mississippi
stated that there could be no legal gambling on land and that any casino would
have to be a riverboat or barge casino that floated on water. After Hurricane Katrina, gaming officials had to rethink their original stipulations. Lawmakers sent a bill to Gov. Haley Barbour that would allow casinos to move a short distance onto dry land.
The sate Senate approved the bill which only applies to Harrsion County which inlcudes Biloxi. Gambling has been legal in Mississippi since 1990 when they first approved of river boat and barge casinos.
1. The casinos that were in Biloxi weren't riverboats, but the huge barge kind of casinos, run by the top companies: MGM/Grand, Caesars, Pinnacle.
They pretty much transformed the state, improving education, reducing unemployment, and attracting other businesses like restaurants and retailers.
Given the level of the devastation of Harrison county the casinos pretty much had the upper hand in the decision to let them onto land.
It'll help the area recover in years instead of decades.
Posted at 4:34PM on Oct 5th 2005 by Bloggator