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Full House Resorts Withdraws Indiana Gaming Commission’s Lawsuit over Terre Haute Casino Operating Permit

A lawsuit that has been challenging the selection of the new Terre Haute casino operator has been officially dropped. The move now clears the way for the project to continue as planned.

Jenny Reske, deputy director of the Indiana Gaming Commission, has explained that the dismissal of the lawsuit would now allow the casino project to move forward. She further shared that the state’s gambling watchdog will be working in collaboration with Churchill Downs officials in regard to the constriction works timelines.

A judge from Marion County dismissed the legal action on January 5th at the request of a casino operator that opposed the Indiana Gaming Commission, which in November 2021 decided to grant Churchill Downs, a company based in Louisville, Kentucky, with the operating license for the Terre Haute casino project. As revealed by a legal representative of Full House Resorts, the company that filed the lawsuit, the operator realized that it has very unlikely to make the gambling regulator change its decision for the casino operator selection despite the issues raised by the legal action.

The legal action claimed that the state’s gambling regulator violated Indiana’s gambling legislation by taking into consideration suggestions from Churchill Downs that it would examine not only the location included in the company’s own application for the project but some other sites, too. The company has proposed a site that is adjacent to the sewage treatment plant in the western part of the city of Indiana.

Churchill Downs Will Now Be Able to Proceed with Terre Haute Project Construction

The Terre Haute casino project has been considerably delayed in the past 12 months amid an investigation into some allegations of financial and criminal misconduct faced by some top executives in an ownership group that initially applied for the casino operating license in 2019.

As CasinoGamesPro previously reported, in December 2021, the Indiana gambling regulatory body was taken to court by Full House Resorts under the claims that the Indiana Gaming Commission violated the state’s gambling laws during its regular meeting in November, when it selected Churchill Downs as the operator of the planned Terre Haute casino. Full House Resorts claimed that the selection of Churchill Downs was made by the Commission without any discussion or further debates in the public meeting.

In December, Lucy Luck Gaming withdrew its appeal against a decision of the gambling watchdog not to renew its gaming license in 2021.

Now, with Full House Resorts deciding to drop its lawsuit against the Indiana Gaming Commission, the selected candidate for the casino operating license – Churchill Downs – will be given the chance to begin the construction of the Terre Haute casino.

Initially, Churchill Downs’ plans for the casino construction involved a site behind the Haute City Center. The CEO of the company, however, shared, that the gambling operator is open to moving the casino project to another location – the interchange of I-70, State Road 46. The development is set to include a casino building situated on 400,000 square feet, with a 56,000-square-foot gaming space that would feature 50 table games and 1,000 slot machines. The project also includes a 125-room hotel. The Terre Haute project is expected to create over 500 full-time jobs.



 Author: Harrison Young

Harrison Young is an experienced writer, who started his career almost 8 years ago. Prior to joining our team at CasinoGamesPro, he worked as an editor for a small magazine.
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