Operator News
US – Golden Nugget Danville gets preliminary approval
By Phil - 21 March 2022
The new Golden Nugget Danville casino has received preliminary status from the Illinois Gaming Board (IGB) with the hope it will open in early 2023. Preliminary status is seen as the prerequisite action from the gaming board prior to granting a full casino license.
Danville Development, the company behind the Golden Nugget, wants to build a 41,500-square-foot gaming floor to house with 500 slot machines, 14 table games, and two restaurants as well as a retail sportsbook.
Danville Mayor Rickey Williams Jr. said: “What that would mean for Danville is within 45 to 60 days, you would likely be having a groundbreaking. So we could be meeting as soon as April, the end of April to do that. And from there, we would likely have a casino open the early part of 2023. This is phenomenal for Danville and Vermilion County. To have a, not nationally known, but internationally known company partnering with the Wilmots to bring us a first-class casino is just phenomenal news.”
Golden Nugget Danville joins four other approved casino projects in Illinois. Only Chicago is still in the casino selection process. The Illinois Gaming Board has already issued its Determination of Preliminary Suitability for American Place in Waukegan, Hard Rock Casino in Rockford, Wind Creek Illinois in South Suburbs and Walker’s Bluff Casino Resort in Williamson County.
The casino will feature a Landry’s steakhouse, Golden Nugget’s iconic restaurant.
In addition, Golden Nugget Online Gaming and Danville Development, a joint venture between Wilmot and GN Danville, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Golden Nugget, announced they have reached a joint agreement allowing market access to online sports betting in Illinois through the proposed Danville casino. Under the agreement, Golden Nugget holds the exclusive right to offer online sports wagering and possibly online casino wagering if that’s legalized in the future. The 20-year market access agreement requires Golden Nugget to pay Danville Development a percentage of its online net gaming revenue, subject to minimum royalty payments over the term.
Golden Nugget will provide a $30m loan to Danville Development to develop and construct the casino.
