After 25 years, casino looks back on changes, growth, giving back
A mock interview. A rush of well-wishers carrying a big check and bouquet of flowers. Tears of joy and excitement.
The mood was light and giddy as Ameristar Casino General Manager Ryan Coppola recently handed out three of five $20,000 scholarships to children of employees, one of many ways in which the East Chicago casino is celebrating its 25th anniversary.
“The property has had such a great history of success. It has such great people. We asked, how can we pay tribute to and honor the property,” Coppola said.
The decision — to celebrate in traditional casino style with donations, giveaways and special promotions for its employees, called team members, guests and the community.
A splashy beginning
Showboat Mardi Gras Casino created a big splash in East Chicago when it opened the doors on April 18, 1997, becoming the fourth of five riverboat casinos to drop anchor in the Region.
The casino, which is docked at the Pastrick Marina and is now called Ameristar, boasted total admissions of 226,674 in its first 13 days of operation, chipping away at its competition, according to a Post-Tribune report at the time.
It raked in $160.9 million in adjusted gross gaming receipts in its first year, an August 1998 evaluation by the Indiana Gaming Commission reported.
Original owner Showboat Marina Casino Partnership had invested $195.5 million on its casino project, which included the vessel, a pavilion, parking garage and paved parking area, and pledged to contribute a portion of its gross profits to the Foundations of East Chicago on a monthly basis. The Foundations, in turn, has used the money to support local churches, schools, and nonprofit organizations.
According to an IGC report, the casino made more than $84,000 in donations and contributions to more than 170 organizations in its first year.
Twenty-five years later, the Foundation’s board president, George Weems, described its relationship with the casino, its only donor, as excellent.
“Because of the casino we’ve been able to do so much for our community in terms of scholarships and donations. For example, we’ve given out more than $16 million in scholarships and were able to give out more than twice that amount in grants to nonprofit organizations,” Weems said.
An evolving industry
When it opened, Showboat had 53,000 square feet of gaming space, 1,699 slot machines and 82 table games. Its pavilion was more than 100,000 square feet, according to the Indiana Gaming Commission report.
It had more than 1,300 employees, some of whom are still working there.
Its competition included Empress in Hammond, and Majestic Star and Trump Indiana in Gary. Blue Chip Casino opened in Michigan City a few months later.
At the time, the gaming floors were on vessels, had to be on a body of water and
were smaller than the pavilions leading to them.
But the casino landscape would soon change and would continue evolving through the years, as owners, trends and rules changed.
Showboat became Harrah’s a year later, the first of several owners and name changes for the East Chicago casino. It’s now owned by Penn National Gaming. Empress is now a much larger Horseshoe Hammond, Majestic Star and Trump Indiana in Gary are gone, replaced by the land-based Hard Rock Northern Indiana in Gary.
Blue Chip Casino, which opened in Michigan City a few months after Showboat, is in a larger vessel.
Competition has grown with more casinos in Indiana and neighboring states, gaming floors have expanded, sportsbooks, hotels and entertainment venues were added at different venues and gaming and dining options changed.
“There’s constant evolution in this business. What it looks like has to keep changing,” Coppola said.
Coppola said the casino last year spent “millions of dollars” on remodeling the entire pavilion area, including transforming the Stadium sports bar near its entrance into the Barstool Sportsbook.
The buffet is gone, due to sanitation worries. The gaming floor now extends practically to the entrance.
“Guests wanted more gaming opportunities closer to the front door,” Coppola said.
He said further changes
are planned in the food and beverage and gaming areas, at four times last year’s investment.
“We have the scale and opportunity to reinvest,” he said. “We secured funding from Penn National. They gave us the money and we can go with it.”
While he wouldn’t give an estimated amount, he said the financing amounts to “multi millions of dollars.
“He said the first focus is looking at how much real estate they have where gaming could be expanded. He has asked an architect to look for any available space not currently being used.
Giving back
Ever since it opened, the casino has been giving back to the community, which Coppola said is home for a vast majority of its team members, with donations to various organizations and charities, including the Foundations of East Chicago.
The casino continued this by giving away more than $100,000 to local charities, and $10,000 to the City of East Chicago to be used for community events, Coppola said.
Forty-seven of the casino’s approximately 800 employees have been there since day one.
Michelle Risner came soon after, when Showboat became Harrah’s.
“I was a transfer from Harrah’s Joliet,” said Risner, of Wheatfield, who said she had a young son at home and was pregnant with her daughter, Alisyn Risner, at the time.
Recently, Alisyn choked back tears as a group of casino workers ran into a room where she was just “interviewed” for the chance to receive a scholarship, her mom at her side, with one person in the group holding a large pretend $20,000 check and another a bouquet of flowers.
“I didn’t know if I would get a scholarship because
my sister (Eryn Risner) got one last year,” said Alysin, who said she plans to major in elementary education at Manchester University with hopes of teaching fifth grade.
She was one of five children of casino employees to receive the $20,000 scholarships. Two others — Yonglin Zhu of Chicago and Devrim Tak, of Wilmette, Illinois, — were also “interviewed” that day and told they won.
Two others were unavailable and unnamed.
Coppola said the casino had 25 days of giveaways for team members and one of the employees who was there since day one won a chance to throw the first pitch at a White Sox game.
Guests also received giveaways in honor of the anniversary.
“A lot of our guests have been here since day one, too,” Coppola said.