Regions Midwest
$375M in Funding to Kick Off Michigan Casino Project
May 7, 2008
By: Barbra Murray, Contributing Editor

The last piece of the financial puzzle for constructing the FireKeepers Casino in Battle Creek, Mich., has been put in place with the FireKeepers Development Authority's closing on $375 million in financing.

With a $340 million Senior Secured Note and a $35 million F&E facility in place, work can commence on FireKeepers Casino. Located about an hour from Lansing and two hours from Detroit, the property will initially feature a 230,000-square-foot casino, restaurants, as well as a covered parking facility to accommodate 2,000 vehicles.

The FireKeepers Authority has charged Gaming Entertainment Michigan L.L.C., a joint venture of which Las Vegas-based Full House Resorts Inc. is a 50 percent owner, with handling the project's construction. Upon completion, GEM will oversee management of FireKeepers Casino for a seven-year period. Joint venture partner Full House presently has its hands in other pies in Michigan. The company has a contract with the Nottawaseppi Huron Band of Potawatomi Indians for the development and management of a premier casino resort in suburban Battle Creek.

A June groundbreaking is in the works for FireKeepers Casino, which is scheduled to open its doors in the summer of next year.

 
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