Hollywood Casino at Greektown, formerly Greektown Casino-Hotel, is a
casino hotel
A casino hotel is an establishment consisting of a casino with temporary lodging provided in an on-premises hotel. Customers receive the benefits of both gambling facilities and lodging. Since the casino and hotel are located on the same premis ...
in the
Greektown
Greektown is a general name for an ethnic enclave populated primarily by Greeks or people of Greek ancestry, usually in an urban neighborhood.
History
The oldest Greek dominated neighborhood outside of Greece were probably the Fener in Ista ...
neighborhood in
Detroit, Michigan
Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at ...
. It is owned by
Vici Properties
Vici Properties Inc. is a real estate investment trust (REIT) specializing in casino properties, based in New York City. It was formed in 2017 as a spin-off from Caesars Entertainment Corporation as part of its bankruptcy reorganization. It owns ...
and operated by
Penn Entertainment
Penn Entertainment, Inc., formerly Penn National Gaming, is an American entertainment company and operator of integrated entertainment, sports content, and casino gaming. It operates 43 properties in 20 states, online sports betting in 14 jurisd ...
.
The casino opened in 2000, under the majority ownership of the
Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians
The Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians (pronounced "Soo Saint Marie", oj, Baawiting Anishinaabeg), commonly shortened to Sault Tribe of Chippewa Indians or the more colloquial Soo Tribe, is a federally recognized Native American tribe in ...
. It was the only casino in Detroit controlled by a Native American tribe. In 2008, during the
Great Recession
The Great Recession was a period of marked general decline, i.e. a recession, observed in national economies globally that occurred from late 2007 into 2009. The scale and timing of the recession varied from country to country (see map). At ...
, the casino went into bankruptcy and was sold.
Hollywood Casino is one of three casinos in the city; there is also a casino in nearby
Windsor, Ontario
Windsor is a city in southwestern Ontario, Canada, on the south bank of the Detroit River directly across from Detroit, Michigan, United States. Geographically located within but administratively independent of Essex County, it is the southe ...
. Detroit is one of the largest American cities to offer casino hotels.
[Mink, Randy, and Karen Mink (July 2001). "Detroit Turns 300 – Detroit 300 Festival". ''Travel America'', World Publishing Co., Gale Group.]
History and development
![GreektownCasinohotelandStMaryRCChurchDetroit](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/48/GreektownCasinohotelandStMaryRCChurchDetroit.jpg)
Shortly after the enactment of the federal
Indian Gaming Regulatory Act
The Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (, ''et seq.'') is a 1988 United States federal law that establishes the jurisdictional framework that governs Indian gaming. There was no federal gaming structure before this act. The stated purposes of the ac ...
(IGRA) in 1988, the
Sault Tribe of Chippewa Indians
The Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians (pronounced "Soo Saint Marie", oj, Baawiting Anishinaabeg), commonly shortened to Sault Tribe of Chippewa Indians or the more colloquial Soo Tribe, is a federally recognized Native American tribe in ...
began working with local developers Ted Gatzaros and Jim Papas to open a casino in Detroit. In November 1992, they announced their plan publicly.
Part 2 of article
Under the plan, Gatzaros and Papas's company, 400 Monroe Associates, would donate a parcel of land in Greektown to become part of the tribe's reservation, and the tribe would build and operate the casino.
Detroit voters approved an advisory referendum in favor of the casino in August 1994, as well as another casino proposed to be built at Atwater Street. The plan was approved by the
Secretary of the Interior Secretary of the Interior may refer to:
* Secretary of the Interior (Mexico)
* Interior Secretary of Pakistan
* Secretary of the Interior and Local Government (Philippines)
* United States Secretary of the Interior
See also
*Interior ministry ...
later that month. However, it also needed approval from Michigan Governor
John Engler
John Mathias Engler (born October 12, 1948) is an American businessman and politician who served as the 46th Governor of Michigan from 1991 to 2003. A member of the Republican Party, he later worked for Business Roundtable, where ''The Hill'' c ...
, because the IGRA required gubernatorial approval for gaming on lands added to a tribe's reservation after 1988. Engler rejected the casino, citing potential proliferation of off-reservation casinos throughout the state.
The tribe next turned to the
ballot initiative
In political science, an initiative (also known as a popular initiative or citizens' initiative) is a means by which a petition signed by a certain number of registered voters can force a government to choose either to enact a law or hold a p ...
process. They partnered with the Atwater group to sponsor the
Michigan Gaming Control and Revenue Act.
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This law would allow up to three private, commercially operated casinos to be opened in Detroit.
It included a preference for proposals that had already been approved by Detroit voters, making the Greektown and Atwater projects the "presumptive choices" for two of the casino licenses. The petition drive and election campaign were financed almost entirely by the Sault Tribe and Atwater. Michigan voters approved the law in November 1996.
The Greektown casino was one of eleven applications submitted to Detroit mayor
Dennis Archer
Dennis Wayne Archer (born January 1, 1942) is an American lawyer, jurist and former politician from Michigan. A Democrat, Archer served as Justice on the Michigan Supreme Court and as mayor of Detroit. He later served as president of the Amer ...
.
The $567-million proposal would include a temporary casino to open in 1998, followed by a permanent casino opening in 2000 with of gaming space and 1,000 hotel rooms.
The temporary casino was designed by architect
Paul Steelman
Paul Curtis Steelman (born September 23, 1955), a native of Atlantic City, New Jersey, is an American architect who is recognized as a designer of global entertainment, hospitality, and gaming architecture based in Las Vegas, Nevada and Macau. Pa ...
. It would be managed by the Las Vegas-based
Millennium Management Group
Cannery Casino Resorts was a hotel and casino operator based in Spring Valley, Nevada. It was acquired by Boyd Gaming in 2016.
History
Cannery Casino Resorts was an outgrowth of Millennium Management Group, a casino management company. Millenn ...
. In December 1997, Archer selected the Greektown proposal, along with the Atwater project (ultimately opened as
MotorCity Casino Hotel
MotorCity Casino Hotel is a casino and hotel in Detroit, Michigan, United States. It was opened in December 1999 and is one of three casino hotels in the city. There are four hotels in the Detroit–Windsor area, including the Ontario-owned Caes ...
) and the proposed
MGM Grand Detroit
The MGM Grand Detroit is one of three casino resort hotels in Detroit, Michigan, and one of four in the Detroit–Windsor area. It is owned by Vici Properties and operated by MGM Resorts International. The casino opened in its temporary locatio ...
.
Construction of the casino began in January 1999.
It incorporated Trappers Alley, a vacant shopping center owned by Gatzaros and Papas, together with a new building.
Costs of the casino, originally estimated at $115 million, increased to $200 million.
Ownership of the casino was to be split with 50 percent owned by the Sault Tribe, 40 percent by Gatzaros and Papas and their wives, and 10 percent by a group of local black investors. However, gaming regulators found problems during Gatzaros and Papas's background checks, and they were effectively forced to sell their shares. Negotiations were held with potential buyers including Millennium Management,
Harrah's Entertainment
Harrah's Entertainment (later named Caesars Entertainment Corporation, previously The Promus Companies) was an American casino and hotel company founded in Reno, Nevada, and based in Paradise, Nevada, that operated over 50 properties and seven g ...
,
MGM Grand, and
Park Place Entertainment
Park Place Entertainment, later named Caesars Entertainment, Inc., was a casino company based in Paradise, Nevada. For a time it was the largest casino operator in the world. It was formed in 1998 as a corporate spin-off of the gaming division of ...
. Advanced talks were held on selling the shares to a group of union
pension funds
A pension fund, also known as a superannuation fund in some countries, is any plan, fund, or scheme which provides retirement income.
Pension funds typically have large amounts of money to invest and are the major investors in listed and priva ...
. Ultimately, the tribe bought out the Gatzaroses and Papases' shares for $275 million, to be paid over 10 years. The casino licensing was approved in September 2000, with the tribe owning a 90 percent stake.
The Greektown Casino opened on November 10, 2000, following the two other casinos that opened the previous year.
The tribe ended its management deal with Millennium in 2002 and assumed direct control of the casino.
Development of the city's permanent casinos was delayed for years by protracted negotiations over the casinos' locations, and by a lawsuit over the constitutionality of the casino licensing process.
In 2002, Greektown agreed with the city to build its $450-million permanent facility on an site at
Interstate 375 and Gratiot Avenue.
In 2005, however, Greektown announced that it would expand at its current location instead of building a new facility.
The $200-million expansion would include a 400-room hotel, a parking garage, convention space, and more gaming space.
In June 2006, site preparation began for the hotel. A city-owned parking garage was demolished to make way for redevelopment. Construction began in October 2006. The hotel tower rises 344 ft. (105 m.) with 30 floors. It opened November 15, 2007, and included a new 13-story, 3,500-space, free parking garage. In November 2008, of additional gaming space was completed and opened over Lafayette. Total gaming space comprised . An expanded and re-designed VIP gaming area opened in February 2009. In November 2009, of convention space opened with a newly designed poker room.
Changes in ownership
By late 2007, the casino was in financial trouble, as its
debt-to-equity ratio The debt-to-equity ratio (D/E) is a financial ratio indicating the relative proportion of shareholders' equity and debt used to finance a company's assets. Closely related to leveraging, the ratio is also known as risk, gearing or leverage. The two ...
fell below the minimum threshold negotiated with the lenders who financed the expansion.
The state threatened to force a sale unless the casino could obtain new financing.
In May 2008, Greektown Casino filed for
Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection
Chapter 11 of the United States Bankruptcy Code ( Title 11 of the United States Code) permits reorganization under the bankruptcy laws of the United States. Such reorganization, known as Chapter 11 bankruptcy, is available to every business, whet ...
to prevent the forced sale.
In June 2010, a group of Greektown's bondholders, organized as Greektown Superholdings, Inc., bought the casino out of bankruptcy.
John Hancock Financial
John Hancock Life Insurance Company, U.S.A. is a Boston-based insurance company. Established April 21, 1862, it was named in honor of John Hancock, a prominent American Patriot.
In 2004, John Hancock was acquired by the Canadian multinational li ...
,
OppenheimerFunds
OppenheimerFunds, Inc. was a global asset manager. As of February 28, 2019, the company managed over $260 billion in assets in over 13,000,000 investor accounts. In May 2019, the company was acquired by Invesco.
OppenheimerFunds had 16 investment ...
,
Brigade Capital
Brigade Capital Management, LP, more commonly referred to as Brigade Capital, is a global alternative investment manager specializing in credit investment strategies. The firm employs a multi-strategy, multi-asset class investment approach focus ...
, and Solus Alternative Asset Management together owned 78% of the company.
Rock Gaming
Jack Entertainment (formerly known as Rock Gaming LLC from 2009 to 2016) is a gaming, hospitality, and entertainment company based in Cleveland, Ohio. The company operates two gaming facilities in Ohio, Jack Cleveland Casino and Jack Thistledown ...
, owned by
Dan Gilbert
Daniel Gilbert (born January 17, 1962) is an American billionaire businessman, investor, and philanthropist. He is the co-founder and majority owner of Rocket Mortgage, founder of Rock Ventures, and owner of the National Basketball Association' ...
, agreed in January 2013 to buy a majority stake in the Greektown Casino. This was part of Gilbert's plan of investment to help revitalize downtown Detroit.
In February 2016, it was announced as part of Rock Gaming's rebranding as Jack Entertainment that the property would be renamed to Jack Detroit Casino–Hotel Greektown.
Plans for the name change were canceled in March 2018, as Gilbert was planning to sell the property and exit the casino business.
In May 2019, Vici Properties and Penn National Gaming (now Penn Entertainment) jointly bought Greektown from Jack Entertainment. Vici paid $700 million for the real estate assets, while Penn National paid $300 million for the operating business. It leased the property from Vici for $56 million per year.
In May 2022, the casino was rebranded under Penn National's primary brand, Hollywood Casino. It also completed more than $30 million in Detroit-themed renovations that covered almost every area of this facility.
The ongoing renovation and remodeling process includes the remodeled VIP garage with over 700 spaces designed for
high-rollers, the hotel lobby, and elevator lobbies. As of 2022, all 400 rooms are in the process of remodeling.
See also
*
Caesars Windsor
Caesars Windsor in Windsor, Ontario, Canada is one of four casinos in the Detroit–Windsor area and was opened in 1994 on the waterfront of the Detroit River. Owned by the Government of Ontario (through the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation ...
*
Greektown Detroit People Mover station
*
Wikimedia graph of Detroit's casino revenues
*
List of tallest buildings in Detroit
This list of tallest buildings in Detroit ranks skyscrapers and high rises in the U.S. city of Detroit, Michigan by height. The tallest skyscraper in Detroit is the 73-story Detroit Marriott at the Renaissance Center, which rises along Detroi ...
References
External links
*
Emporis profile of Greektown Casino
{{Casinos in Michigan
2000 establishments in Michigan
Casinos in Michigan
Greektown, Detroit
Skyscraper hotels in Detroit
Resorts in Michigan
Performing arts centers in Michigan
Economy of Detroit
Casinos completed in 2000
Hotel buildings completed in 2008
Cannery Casino Resorts
Tourist attractions in Detroit
Casino hotels