Kings Of Vegas

In Louisiana, Casinos are booming Post-Katrina

December 25th, 2005

Surprise. Gambling keeps going in the New Orleans area.

From NOLA.com:

For those casinos that remained open, especially in New Orleans and Baton Rouge, there’s been gold from those storms. For example, Baton Rouge’s two riverboats saw their take jump more than 50 percent in October and November as the city served as refugee central for the New Orleans area.

Last month, the two open casinos in the New Orleans area — the Boomtown and Treasure Chest riverboats — scored $36.9 million in take, $14.2 million more than in November 2004. Mind you, Harrah’s downtown casino was shuttered, along with another riverboat, likely meaning some money just got shifted around — along with some of the usual New Orleans take winding up in the Baton Rouge casinos.

But in a city where the population is only a fraction of pre-Katrina?

A Treasure Chest official told the Louisiana Gaming Control Board that the onslaught wasn’t due to local residents, long the New Orleans riverboat market’s chief customers. Instead, the casino was hosting construction workers “who are looking for something to do after hours,” said Tom McPherson, an official with Boyd Gaming Corp.

At any rate, customers, on average, departed the Treasure Chest $131 lighter than when they went in — the largest such figure in the state last month, usually reserved for either the Horseshoe Casino in Bossier City or the Delta Downs track casino in Vinton — both of which host a lot of Texans.

Entry Filed under: News