Port Canaveral, where gambling ships have been squeezed by a deep recession and increased competition from inland casinos, thinks it has a way to breathe new life into the business: Let the slot machines spin while the ships are docked. The Canaveral Port Authority voted Wednesday to ask state lawmakers to allow nearly around-the-clock gaming on gambling ships at the Brevard County seaport.

Port Canaveral - The Canaveral Port Authority decided Wednesday to create a commission to study dockside gambling after hearing its lucrative casino ship tenants have seen precipitous declines in passengers and profits during the past two years. Passenger counts have declined 41 percent, Gary Inks, vice president of sales and marketing for SunCruz Casinos, said in a presentation to commissioners, and profits have eroded.

Canaveral Port Authority commissioners on Wednesday could be asked to approve a temporary gambling operation out of Port Canaveral, until the 415-foot Ocean Jewel is refurbished at a shipyard in the Dominican Republic. Port commissioners in September ratified a five-year, USD 18 million deal with Omega Commercial Finance to bring the 2,000-passenger Ocean Jewel to Brevard County early next year under the new name, Omega Royale.

Two more gambling ships are interested in coming to Brevard County, which could bring to four the number of such ships based at Port Canaveral. There currently is one gambling ship operating at Port Canaveral and a second ship is expected to start operations later this month. The two new potential players made presentations Tuesday to the Canaveral Port Authority as the first step in negotiations.

Port Canaveral - The gambling business at Port Canaveral is about to get larger and more competitive. After a sometimes-heated debate Wednesday, port commissioners voted unanimously to allow a third gambling vessel to operate out of the port. Las Vegas Casinos Lines LLC plans to start operating a 253-foot-long, 900-passenger vessel out of Brevard County's seaport in December or January.

Port Canaveral - The U.S. Coast Guard this morning allowed two gambling ships to resume regularly scheduled cruises. The Sterling Casino's Ambassador II left Port Canaveral at 11 a.m. for a five-hour gambling excursion into international waters. The company said the ship would also carry on with its 7 p.m. to midnight gambling cruise. On Tuesday, the Coast Guard ordered the Ambassador II to leave Port Canaveral because it did not have required documentation.