A new proposal that called for the creation of a casino located in St. Tammany parish, Louisiana was rejected by voters late last week. Under the $325 million project, Peninsula Pacific Entertainment (P2E) was expected to build a luxurious casino resort called Camellia Bay Resort. The planned location was near the city of Slidell.
St. Tammany Parish Residents Say No to Commercial Casino Project
P2E’s DiamondJacks venue located in Bossier City shut its doors earlier this year. The company then sought to relocate its license to another area, which may prove to be more profitable. One such location was St. Tammany parish, located in southeastern Louisiana and near the border with Mississippi.
Before starting the project, P2E had to receive approval from St. Tammany parish residents. Thus, a referendum was launched on the topic. Some 30% of the residents eligible to vote participated in the local referendum. Consequently, the bigger part or some 63% of the voters decided to vote against the commercial casino project. In contrast, only 36% of the residents voted in favor of the Slidell casino project.
The Referendum Result Is a Loss for P2E
Besides the casino resort, P2E was also planning on investing some $35 million into a new sports complex. However, considering the referendum outcome, the company will likely have to create a new plan for its DiamondJacks casino license relocation. The referendum vote has impacted P2E financially, considering that the company used millions to fund its campaign.
Undoubtedly, this is a difficult moment for P2E. The operator is at another crossroad whether to continue looking for a new location for DiamondJacks or reopen the venue at its previous location in Bossier City. Not unexpectedly, P2E wasn’t happy with the outcome of the referendum. Local supporters of the project have also shared their concerns regarding the outcome of the ballot. According to them, the decision will ultimately result in losses for St. Tammany parish, as well as the city of Slidell.
Local Nonprofit Organization Is Happy with the Result of the Ballot
While supporters of the casino project say the result is unfavorable for the parish, the nonprofit organization Stand Up St. Tammany deemed the referendum result a big win and said that the community has spoken. Stand Up St. Tammany said in a recent statement that it has invested many hours to spread the information and in the end, the “people responded with their vote.”
“It was a tremendous effort of monumental proportion against the largest monetary insert in the history of Louisiana.”
Stand Up St. Tammany
The organization said that it is proud of the turnout of the voting and the fact that “the West and the East side of the parishes STOOD STRONG TOGETHER to overwhelmingly vote one way!!!” Last but not least, Stand Up St. Tammany acknowledged that collective efforts matter and thanked everyone involved in the efforts against the commercial casino.