Casino Queen
Specialties: DraftKings at Casino Queen is the place to be, with more than 38,000 square feet of gaming space, the loosest slot machines, and the hottest tables in town! Come and visit us at the Casino Queen - we're the odds-on favorite!
| Casino Queen | |
|---|---|
| Location | East St. Louis, Illinois |
| Address | 2000 S Front St |
| Opening date | June 23, 1993 |
| Total gaming space | 38,000 sq ft (3,500 m2) |
| Casino type | Riverboat |
| Owner | Gaming and Leisure Properties |
| Operating license holder | Employee-owned management company |
| Coordinates | 38°37′33″N90°10′34″W / 38.62583°N 90.17611°W |
| Website | CasinoQueen.com |
The Casino Queen is a riverboat casino located near the Mississippi River in East St. Louis, Illinois, just across the river from downtown St. Louis. It is owned by Gaming and Leisure Properties and operated by an employee-owned management company.
- The Casino Queen RV park is locate just across the Mississippi River from downtown Saint Louis and the arch. The RV park is clean, safe and has very helpful/friendly security staff. The sites are spacious and have water/electric/sewer hookups. The larger RV sites 40-70ft rigs are out in the open and provide no shade.
- While the Casino Queen itself is an excellent destination, since it is a riverboat casino (a replica of an 1800s, four-story sidewheel riverboat) with more than one thousand slot machines and 28,000 square feet of gaming, the hotel is also in a great place for those exploring the city.
History[edit]
Illinois enacted a riverboat casino law in 1990 authorizing licenses for ten casinos to open around the state.[1] One of the licenses was guaranteed to East St. Louis, in an effort to help the financially troubled city.[2][3] The group that would ultimately open the Casino Queen, led by real estate developer Bill Koman, submitted its proposal to the Illinois Gaming Board in January 1992.[4] With no other proposals before the board, Koman's group was awarded the license in May 1992.[5]
The Casino Queen opened on June 23, 1993.[6] It was viewed positively by most city officials and residents, as the struggling city desperately needed both a revenue source and employment opportunities for its residents.[7] Casino Queen originally operated on a boat called the White Star One.
Construction of a hotel began in 1998.[8] The 157-room hotel, built at a cost of $15 million, opened in January 2000.[9]
Changed regulations led to the casino to be moved inland, but still built above a shallow pit of water, in 2007. The move also allowed the casino to add 10,000 additional square feet of gaming space. In 2014, the White Star One was auctioned off and sold for $600,000.[10] Casino Queen has generated over $160 million for the city of East St. Louis between 1993 and 2009.[11]
In 2012, Koman and his partners sold the Casino Queen for $170 million to a newly formed Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP), which would steer the casino's profits into the retirement accounts of participating employees.[12] In 2014, to pay down debt taken on to finance the purchase, the ESOP sold the real estate of the Casino Queen to Gaming and Leisure Properties for $140 million, leasing it back for $14 million per year.[13][14]
In 2020, the casino struck a deal with sports betting provider DraftKings to rebrand the property as DraftKings at Casino Queen.[15] As part of the rebranding, Sevens sports bar will be gutted and re-built as a full sportsbook, and the casino will be integrated into DraftKings' mobile betting app.[15]
Property information[edit]
The casino includes both 1,100 slots and 34 table games in its 38,000 square feet of gaming space.[16] Per Illinois law and unlike neighboring Missouri casinos, it is not open 24 hours a day.[17]
Dining options include: the Market Street Buffet, Prime Steakhouse, Sevens, and Deli & Chips.
Both a hotel and an RV Park are located on the Casino Queen property.
References[edit]
- ^Robert Kelly (February 8, 1990). 'Dice to be rollin' on the river'. St. Louis Post-Dispatch – via NewsBank.
- ^Kathleen Best (September 11, 1990). 'East side casino assured: E. St. Louis wins right to riverboat'. St. Louis Post-Dispatch – via NewsBank.
- ^Lynn Sweet (July 3, 1990). '10 vie for 5 riverboat gambling licenses'. Chicago Sun-Times – via NewsBank.
- ^'William Koman seeks license for casino boat in E. St. Louis'. St. Louis Post-Dispatch. January 3, 1992 – via NewsBank.
- ^Patrick E. Gauen (May 15, 1992). 'Illinois backs casino at E. St. Louis site'. St. Louis Post-Dispatch – via NewsBank.
- ^Margaret Gillerman (June 24, 1993). 'Casino Queen, a city's dreamboat, sails at last'. St. Louis Post-Dispatch – via NewsBank.
- ^Brett Pulley (21 July 1998). 'Casino Changes the Fortune Of a Hard-Luck Illinois City'. The New York Times. Retrieved 17 November 2019.
- ^'Mayor says hotel signals renewal of East St. Louis'. St. Louis Post-Dispatch. November 18, 1998 – via NewsBank.
- ^Denise Hollinshed (January 4, 2000). 'New hotel at Casino Queen opens for business with views of St. Louis skyline'. St. Louis Post-Dispatch – via NewsBank.
- ^Robert Patrick (4 April 2014). 'Old Casino Queen yields $600,000 at auction'. St Louis Post Dispatch. Retrieved 17 November 2019.
- ^'Gambling on the future of East St Louis'. Lindenwood University. Retrieved 17 November 2019.
- ^Tim Logan (December 28, 2012). 'Employee-owners hope to reverse Casino Queen's fortunes'. St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Retrieved 2020-07-26.
- ^Lisa Brown (December 10, 2013). 'REIT buying Casino Queen real estate for $140 million'. St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Retrieved 2020-07-26.
- ^'Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. closes acquisition of the real estate assets related to the Casino Queen in East St. Louis for $140 million' (Press release). Gaming and Leisure Properties. January 23, 2014. Retrieved 2020-07-26 – via GlobeNewswire.
- ^ ab'In deal with sports wagering firm, Casino Queen rebrands as DraftKings at Casino Queen'. St. Louis Post-Dispatch. July 24, 2020. Retrieved 2020-07-24.
- ^'Casino Queen'. Clayco. Retrieved 17 November 2019.
- ^'IL Says Casino Queen Can't Stay Open 24 Hours'. St Louis Public Radio. Retrieved 17 November 2019.
See also[edit]
External links[edit]
Games at the Casino Queen
The games offered at the Casino Queen casino are all provided by Real Time Gaming. Each game has been hand picked by the casino team and offers the player an entertaining and fun selection of games that are available for fun play in addition to real money betting. Players can try out the games for as long as they want before placing real money bets. There are slots, table games, video pokers and specialty games but no live dealer casino games. The table games include a wide selection of options with multiple choices of roulette and blackjack and also many other exciting games including baccarat and craps. There are also multiple games of video poker to choose from with both single hand and multi hand games and games with extra bonus symbols that offer the player a chance to increase his payouts if this card lands on the screen, Specialty games are games where the player just places his bet and waits for the results to come in and then there are the slots that make up the majority of the games offered at the casino. The slots offered include both three reel and five-reel games. There are games with set paylines and games with winning ways where the player has to line up the same symbols on the screen in order to win. There are games with progressive and random progressive jackpots and games with bonus gamble options offered at the end of every winning spin. Players can choose to gamble their winnings by guessing the color or suit of a card or by tossing a coin and guessing which side it will land on. Correct guesses increase the payouts for the player and an incorrect guess loses the winnings for that spin. Each slots game has its own theme that is supported by the different symbols in the game including the layout of the game. The pay table of the game is where the player can find details of the different awards and also any bonus symbols or games that can be triggered. Each game is unique, and the bonus games include wilds that complete winning payouts, scatters that lead to bonus payouts, free spins and other bonus games and the bonus games themselves. The bonus games are vast and varied and each game has its own, whether it is a pick and win bonus game, a free spins game, expanding symbols, bonus wheels or consecutive bonus games where the player works his way through different challenges and tasks earning payouts as he goes along. Every game has a theme and style and through the theme the player also receives entertainment and sometimes learns about important historical events, special animals, sporting events or worlds of fantasy and make believe. New slots and other games are added from time to time, giving the player something new to look forward to, especially when added with a special bonus or reward.Casino Queen Hours
