Fourteen years ago local investors told The Gazette editorial board about their plan to win a state license and build a casino in Cedar Rapids.
Over the years, two countywide referendums supporting gambling passed. Two tries by local investors to get a casino license from the Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission failed, in 2014 and 2017. Regulators feared Cedar Crossing Casino would “cannibalize” revenue from existing casinos, including Riverside Casino and Golf Resort.
Riverside CEO Dan Kehl told Cedar Rapids voters in 2013 he would build a waterpark here if they defeated the first referendum. It passed easily in a snowstorm. The Iowa Legislature approved a two-year moratorium on new licenses delaying Cedar Rapids’ latest plan.
