Page 77 - South Mississippi Living - August, 2022

President Casino after Hurricane Katrina.
Casino row was destroyed by Hurricane Katrina.
Palace Casino after Hurricane Katrina.
The second Biloxi casino to open in 1992, President Casino.
Lady Luck Casino, 1993.
gaming. On Aug. 1, 1992, the first casino, Isle of Capri
Casino, officially opened in Biloxi. There were lines of
people waiting hours in the hot sun
for their chance to be a part of history. Opening just weeks after Isle of Capri were the President Casino and the Biloxi Belle. While those three casinos are no longer here today, there are 26 casinos
in the Magnolia state regulated by the Mississippi Gaming Commission and three casinos owned by the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians. The gaming industry supports more than 15,000 direct jobs and generates more than $660 million in non-gaming revenue.
“So many people celebrated the new economic growth that those first boats
and the legalization of gaming was going to bring to Biloxi. In fact, I was on the first boat the day it opened (in 1992),” said Biloxi Mayor Andrew “FoFo” Gilich. “Gaming is in our DNA in Biloxi. It is part of Biloxi’s history and continues to be part of Biloxi’s future.”
The Mississippi gaming industry has had its challenges, though, none larger than Hurricane Katrina in 2005. By allowing construction of casinos on land after the historic natural disaster, the state made it possible for casinos along
the Gulf Coast to
rebuild, ensuring
a brighter future
for the region.
Casinos may
have started out as riverboats
that featured gaming, but through
the years they have evolved to include top-rated restaurants, four-star hotels, shopping promenades, entertainment, outdoor activities and more as industry leaders continue to reinvest in the properties. Most recently, statewide legislation was changed to allow for sportsbetting, a move that has had a positive impact on the
industry.
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