Forest County Potawatomi Community sees slight boost in gaming revenues

Thursday, September 7, 2017  

The Forest County Potawatomi Community is seeing an increase in gaming revenues as it undertakes another expansion of its casino in Wisconsin.

According to calculations made by The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, the Potawatomi Hotel and Casino had a net win of $400 million in the year ending on July 31. That represents a 1.5 percent increase from the year prior, the paper said.

"Those numbers are in line with gaming revenue trends in the Midwest and further reflect a mature regional market," a spokesperson for the casino told the paper as he confirmed the 1.5 percent figure.

The casino opened in 1991 and was the first to win approval under the two-part determination provisions of the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act. The law required approval by the state governor, in addition to the Bureau of Indian Affairs.

Since then, the facility has undergoing several expansions. The latest is a second hotel tower, an $80 million investment that will add another 119 rooms to the complex in Milwaukee.

“The Forest County Potawatomi have committed to investing in Milwaukee. This next addition is one more example of that commitment,” chief operating officer Rodney Ferguson said in a press release in May, when the project was announced.

The expansion is occurring on a property adjacent to the casino that is not in trust so city approval is needed. The plan commission approved the project unanimously in July, Greater Milwaukee reported.

The tower is expected to debut in the spring of 2019, according to the tribe. It will bring the total number of rooms at the casino to 500.

Read More on the Story:
Gambling revenue flat as Potawatomi tribe wins about $400 million from gamblers (The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel September 4, 2017)