The man spearheading the National Exhibition Centre's GBP 250 million fight to win Britain's first super-casino is quitting. NEC chief executive Andrew Morris said he was stepping down for "family reasons" after just 18 months in the job. He said living away from his London-based family five days a week had become too much to bear.
The Las Vegas building boom under way will usher in a slew of new luxury properties over the next five years, continuing a transformation from Middle America playground to the desert version of Southern California and Miami Beach resort enclaves. It is the biggest development binge in Las Vegas history, and it is based on something no one talks about: fearlessness.
It was a year ago when a frail Kerry Packer carefully made his way into the Hyatt Hotel in Sydney for breakfast with his mate, Las Vegas casino legend Steve Wynn. Packer wanted to know what he thought about his son James Packer's deal with the 28-year-old Lawrence Ho, the son of Macau casino veteran Stanley Ho, to go into the casino business together in the former Portuguese colony.
Gamblers will be put under the microscope in a study of betting habits by the University of Glasgow. Researchers will talk to gamblers in casinos, betting shops, arcades and bingo halls, those who play the lottery and internet gamblers.
MGM Grand Detroit Casino's permanent complex has a USD 765-million price tag, making it Michigan's largest current construction project and dwarfing the price tags of both of Detroit's new pro sports stadiums and Compuware's downtown headquarters.
A Formal bid for permission to open a casino has been launched by Sevenoaks District Council. After weeks of speculation the authority has been revealed as one of 68 across the country competing for 17 new casinos planned by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport.
In years past, Raymond Wong laid his chips on the worn-out felt of the baccarat tables at the Lisboa casino, a windowless space that epitomized the seedy reputation of this gambling enclave in southern China. Cigarette smoke hovered over throngs jostling for spots at the tables. Prostitutes trawled the hallways.
A major property developer is hoping to steal a march on Glasgow's big three would-be super-casino operators by locating a new gambling and leisure complex in the centre of the city. The firm yesterday divulged details of their rival bid for the sole UK regional casino if Glasgow wins the licence from a field of 27 cities, towns and resorts throughout the UK.
The 12 Atlantic City casinos ended 2005 with a healthy 5.7 percent increase in gross operating profit -- including an 18 percent jump in the fourth quarter, the state Casino Control Commission reported yesterday. The gambling parlors reported a total of USD 1.3 billion in gross operating profit for 2005, and USD 273.7 million in the fourth quarter, the commission said.
A new gambling boat could begin sailing from the Little River docks today, just weeks after Horry County Council decided not to ban such operations. The Diamond Girl II will replace the Southern Elegance after a buyout by Myrtle Beach businessman Al Shuman and his Diamond Management company.
Swindon has entered the race to become home to one of the country's new breed of casinos. The council has formally submitted proposals to introduce slot machines, poker and roulette tables on an unprecedented scale. Town leaders have applied for permission for a 1,500 square-metre casino with up to 80 gambling machines.
Antigua on Tuesday accused the United States of flaunting a World Trade Organization ruling that deemed unfair U.S. efforts to restrict Americans from using Internet gambling sites based in the Caribbean island. Finance Minister Errol Cort said pending U.S. legislation on online betting would make it harder for Antigua gambling companies to do business with U.S. citizens.
