The Beau Rivage Resort, who was once the pinnacle of Mississippi's Gulf Coast gaming industry, reopened last week under ironically good weather, with many of the casino's 3,000 employees.
A Protestors group nearby protested the fact that no progress is being made in providing
affordable housing for low- and middle-income families who's houses were destroyed by Katrina. Remarkably, the casino reopened with 400 more employees than it had before the storm came, which didn't affect the protests.
Other than the Beau Rivage Resort there are three more coastal casinos that are set to open by October.
The Palace Casino Resort Hotel was the third casino to reopen on the coast. Both barges of the Palace were destroyed, but the casino has set up the gaming floor in the hotel's lobby, which is about two-thirds of the pre-Katrina gambling space. The move to the lobby was made possible after the state legislature allowed offshore gaming within 800 feet of the waterfront.
Overall, the state's casinos earned $222.7 million statewide in July, down from $237.6 million in the same month last year. The state only allows casinos on the Mississippi River and along the Gulf Coast. The Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians also operate two casinos, which are not regulated or taxed by the state.
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