DiamondJacks Casino in Louisiana Given More Time to Figure Out Future

Pacific Peninsula Entertainment (P2E) was surprised when voters in St. Tammany Parish, LA, decided against a measure for the company to bring its DiamondJacks casino to the area. It would have been located in Slidell, bringing jobs and money to the city. However, when the petition was requested, P2E was left unsure of what to do next. The company is apparently still in shock, as it needed more time to figure out the casino’s future. The Louisiana Gaming Control Board (LGCB) has decided that its request should be granted.

P2E Gains Time to Decide Casino’s Future

Thursday saw the LGCB give P2E a little more time to decide what to do about its license for the Bossier City casino. The company indicated a couple of weeks ago that it likely wouldn’t be able to make a decision by the February 9 deadline, and requested an extension.

The operator should have to reopen DiamondJacks in accordance with a September 4 board resolution or lose its license. The decision was made because St. Tammany Parish residents did not approve the referendum.

Ronnie Johns, chair of the LGCB, presented a resolution to give the casino owners until February 25 and required P2E executives, at a hearing on February 17, to detail their plans for Bossier City.

The casino was closed in March 2020 at the start of the pandemic. Then it was shut down permanently in May 2020 after Governor John Bel Edwards gave permission for casinos to reopen when the first ravages from the coronavirus receded. The company closed without giving the state notice, which raised eyebrows among regulators. Nearly 400 workers lost their jobs. P2E sold furniture, linens, silverware, and other hotel items.

No Clear Decision In the Works

Although company officials claimed that the closure was caused by the coronavirus virus, DiamondJacks’ had been one of the worst-performing casinos in the state for many years. DiamondJacks was owned by the company since 2015 when it bought it out of bankruptcy.

Many casino companies may bid for the DiamondJacks license if the state doesn’t retake it, according to Dan Lee, CEO of Full House Resorts, as reported by The Advocate. The company, which owns casinos in Mississippi and other states, is coming off a solid performance last year and could have more financial resources available.

Lee explained that the gaming board would then be able to offer the license to whoever makes the best offer as to how much money it will invest and how many job opportunities it will create.