Five WyCo casino proposals advance

All five Wyandotte County casino proposals have made it to the final phase of a process that will choose one for the county.

At a Tuesday meeting, the Kansas Lottery Commission approved contracts with 10 developers, including the five interested in Wyandotte County, that are hoping to build and manage gaming facilities in Kansas, according to a release. The approval means the developers met minimum requirements of getting local endorsement, having enough financial resources and having at least three consecutive years' experience managing casino gambling.

Now the proposals go before a Lottery Gaming Facility Review Board, which will choose one for each gaming zone. The board's vote to pick a Wyandotte County casino is scheduled for Sept. 18-19, according to the Kansas Racing and Gaming Commission Web site.

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The destination casino proposals for Wyandotte County include:

• A $792 million proposal by RED Development LLC, Mohegan Sun and Olympia Gaming LLC.
• A $797 million proposal by Las Vegas Sands Corp.
• A $705.6 million proposal by The Cordish Co. and Kansas Speedway.
• A $687 million proposal by Golden Gaming Inc.
• A $648.6 million proposal by Pinnacle Entertainment Inc.

Sands made it through despite being the last to receive local endorsement. Company Vice President Andy Abboud said he was pleased with the approach to weighing the proposals.

"I think we've clearly moved into very favorable position moving forward," he said Tuesday.

Legends Sun also expressed confidence in its potential to gain the Wyandotte County gambling spot.

"Simply stated, Legends Sun offers the best project in terms of quality, revenue for both city and state, and the number of new jobs created," Mohegan Sun CEO Mitchell Grossinger Etess said in a statement.