QUAPAW, Okla. (AP) – An Oklahoma-based tribe is partnering with the owner of a Las Vegas hotel to reopen a track in southeast Kansas and convert it to a casino.
Phil Ruffin is owner of Las Vegas’ Treasure Island Hotel and Casino and Camptown Greyhound Park in Frontenac, Kansas. He’s teaming with the Quapaw Tribe’s Downstream Casino to open a state-owned, privately managed casino in Crawford County.
The state Lottery Commission must approve of the plan.
Legislation that went into effect in July lowered the investment required for a prospective casino developer from $225 million to $50 million. It also drops the fee the state charges to developers from $25 million to $5.5 million.
Camptown opened in 1995 but ran live dog races for less than six months before its owners filed for bankruptcy.