Grand Victoria Sale

As reported by the Cincinnati Enquirer: "Grand Victoria Casino & Hotel in Rising Sun will be up for sale this fall.

"Majority owner Hyatt Hotels & Resorts will put the 201-room and casino on the market in September, said general manager Steven Jimenez. He said Grand Victoria's 1,100 employees have already been notified of the plan.

"…Jimenez said he didn't know what prompted the decision to sell the casino, which opened on Oct. 4, 1996. He did not know what the asking price would be.

"…Grand Victoria had nearly 1.9 million admissions in fiscal 2005 (which ended this June) and paid $3 million in gaming and admission taxes, according to the Indiana Gaming Commission.

The decision to sell the Ohio River casino some 25 miles southwest of Cincinnati comes as an expansion is planned of the Argosy Casino in nearby Lawrenceburg.

Argosy's owner, Penn National Gaming Inc., plans to replace the current 74,300-square-foot riverboat with a 250,000-square-foot barge that will open in late 2008.

Argosy was the busiest of the state's 10 riverboats in July, with 361,000 visitors and $41.5 million in table and slot winnings, according to Indiana Gaming Commission records. Grand Victoria, which is a further drive from Cincinnati, had about 180,000 visitors and $14.5 million in winnings.

Grand Victoria, which opened in 1996, has a 40,000-square-foot riverboat along with five restaurants and an 18-hole golf course.

Rising Sun Mayor Bill Marksberry said the opening of Grand Victoria was a major development for the city of 2,400 people and that he was optimistic a sale would not hurt the local community.

"It's one of those businesses that employ a lot of people here as well as from Ohio, Kentucky and Indiana," he said.