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A rendering shows plans for a sportsbook at WarHorse Gaming casinos proposed for Lincoln and Omaha.
As it should be, Nebraska’s first casinos will be built in connection with the state’s six existing racetracks.
That decision to allow the “racinos” in Lincoln, Omaha, Grand Island, Columbus, South Sioux City and Hastings was appropriately made by the Legislature, rather than the Nebraska Gaming and Racing Commission, the agency charged with implementing casino gambling in the state.
Selecting the existing locations essentially determined which areas would receive the economic and development benefits of the casinos rather than opening the floodgates to allow new tracks and casinos, which have been proposed in Bellevue, North Platte, Ogallala, Gering and Kimball.
Instead, Albion Sen. Tom Briese’s LB876, which was approved on a 38-3 vote, requires the commission to conduct market and socioeconomic studies for each proposed new track, completing them “as soon as possible” but no later than Jan. 1, 2025.
Taken as a group, those studies should determine the market for both racing and casino gambling in the state, answering questions from the simple ones – are there enough horses and racing days to have, say, 10 racinos operate in the state? – to more complicated analyses as to whether more than the initial six casinos will oversaturate the market in a lower-population state that is already surrounded by casinos.
Those studies can only take, at maximum, about 30 months from now. But there is no similar timetable for the commission to approve the casinos.
The Attorney General’s Office approved the 67 pages of rules and regulations, which were submitted to them in January, on March 21, sending them back to the commission, which sent them back to Gov. Pete Ricketts, whose policy office is engaged in additional review.
That delay has led to speculation that Ricketts, who opposed the casino gambling initiative, is doing everything he can to delay the casinos, much as his administration slowed the implementation of voter-approved Medicare expansion for two years.
Once Peterson and Ricketts sign off on the rules and regulations, which is expected sometime this summer, the racetracks can apply for a state gaming license, establish temporary casinos near the tracks and begin construction of the permanent casinos.
The temporary casinos will likely be up and running a few months after they are approved. But they will not have sports wagering, one of the biggest draws for casinos.
The construction of the proposed $220 million casino at the Lincoln Race Course near Highway 77 on West Denton Road will take about 20 months – which means, at best, the casino will not open until mid-2024.
Casinos at some of the other existing tracks, most notably South Sioux City, probably will open later than 2024.
But they will, within a few years, be open in locations that reflect the intent of the voters who gave the racino proposal 2 to 1 approval two years ago – the six existing tracks that have carried horse racing in Nebraska for decades.
This editorial has been updated to correct that the Attorney General’s Office has approved the gambling rules and regulations. After their approval on March 21, they were sent back to the Racing and Gaming Commission, which then sent them to the governor’s office for additional review.
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A rendering shows plans for a sportsbook at WarHorse Gaming casinos proposed for Lincoln and Omaha.
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