Construction on a new $100 million Central Illinois casino project could begin next year.
That's according to Keith Smith, the CEO of Par-A-Dice Hotel and Casino parent company Boyd Gaming.
"We anticipate replacing our 30-year-old riverboat casino with Par-A-Dice with a compelling new entertainment destination. While it is still early in the design process, we could begin construction as early as the first half of 2026 pending regulatory approvals," Smith said in prepared remarks during an earnings call Thursday.
That timeline gels with the company's assurances to the Illinois Gaming Board last spring that it would have a casino project development plan ready to present to state regulators by March 2026.
State law and local agreements mandate a land-based casino be based in the city of Peoria. The current riverboat operation is set up in East Peoria.
During last month's mayoral debate, 2nd District councilman and mayoral candidate Chuck Grayeb said the city of Peoria is showing Boyd Gaming potential casino locations. The city is also retaining legal counsel and an investment banking consultant for the ongoing casino talks.
The Par-A-Dice saw about 435,000 visitors in fiscal year 2024, generating $61.9 million in adjusted gross receipts. The state collected $9.1 million in tax revenues, while the local tax take was $3.5 million split 50/50 between Peoria and East Peoria.
Smith says only that the project will be in Central Illinois. But last year, he told investors that riverboat casinos are no longer competitive.
The performance of Boyd Gaming's Treasure Chest casino near New Orleans skyrocketed after the company transitioned the casino from a riverboat to a new land-based operation. Smith said that project was an unexpected "home run" for the company, but he doesn't necessarily expect a new Par-A-Dice to emulate it.
He said the market dynamics and populations between the two areas are "completely different." He also noted that video gaming terminals, which compete with casinos, are far more prolific around the Par-A-Dice than they are in New Orleans. At the end of June 2024, the state of Illinois had more than 48,000 such terminals.
"We are confident that this project will deliver a solid return on our investment by driving incremental growth in visitation and business volumes at Par-A-Dice following its completion," Smith told analysts and investors during the earnings call.
Smith did say the $100 million price tag for a new Central Illinois casino would be similar to the new Treasure Chest, and so too would the cost savings of transitioning to a non-riverboat operation.
The CEO noted that new casinos are coming online in Illinois, but those projects aren't having a significant impact on Boyd's bottom line.
