Isle of Capri Casinos and Paradise Casino, LLC have entered into an option agreement, giving Paradise the right to buy the Crown riverboat casino, one of two owned by Isle of Capri in Lake Charles, Louisiana.

Paradise now will proceed obtaining approval from the Louisiana Gaming Board and also succeed in a local referendum to relocate the Crown, which is licensed, to Bossier City. Isle would consolidate its operations onto the adjacent Grand Palais gaming vessel, the larger of the two. The option must be exercised by November 30. Financial terms of the agreement and purchase price were not disclosed.

Virginia McDowell, Isle’s president and chief executive officer, said, “We believe that the pending transaction for one of the two vessels located at our gaming operation in Lake Charles will provide a solid opportunity for our company. For our team and customers, we will continue to operate our business as usual and are confident that, if the option is exercised and the transaction is completed, we will be able to create an even better work environment and more successful business through this consolidation.”

The Crown Casino has been the lowest-performing riverboat in Louisiana, typically generating less than $2 million in monthly gambling revenue.

The primary officers for Paradise Casino come from Silver Slipper Gaming, LLC, which owns the Silver Slipper casino in Bay St. Louis, Mississippi, and St. Gabriel Downs, LLC, which in February lost a bid to win Louisiana’s 15th and final riverboat casino license.

Currently, the Lake Charles gambling market consists of the two Isle of Capri boats, Pinnacle Entertainment’s L’Auberge Du Lac riverboat and the Delta Downs racetrack, plus a tribal casino at nearby Kinder. Mojito Pointe, a $400 million riverboat hotel resort developed by Dan Lee’s Creative Casinos, LLC, is under construction in Lake Charles. Bossier City offers four riverboat casinos and one in neighboring Shreveport, plus a racino at Louisiana Downs. Both the Lake Charles and Shreveport-Bossier City markets draw heavily on players from Texas.

By GGB Staff

Staff writers for Global Gaming Business magazine. Las Vegas, Nevada.