Sanfilippo said Harrah’s employees who worked at the New Orleans property will be given first priority for jobs with the reopening. All are closed because of hurricanes Katrina and Rita, but the New Orleans property will reopen in February. This agreement is a significant step toward the rebuilding of the Mississippi Gulf Coast,” Sanfilippo said.Īfter its merger with Caesars Entertainment this year, Harrah’s wound up with casinos in Lake Charles, New Orleans, Gulfport and Biloxi. “And by selling these assets to our neighbors in Gulfport, we will give the owners of the Copa site the additional space they need to develop an ambitious project of their own. “We are fully committed to this state and are excited about the opportunity to design and develop a first-class resort at our Biloxi site that will complement our substantial entertainment offerings in northwest Mississippi.

He said Harrah’s will rebuild its Biloxi property from the ground up. Sanfilippo said he recently met with the mayor and he “completely understood” his desire to plan for the future and reassess the city’s strategic plans. On Tuesday, Warr said, “The sales taxes in the city are up and we are not depending upon sales taxes from casinos.”Īnthony Sanfilippo, president of Harrah’s operations in the central United States, said Tuesday that Warr’s opposition was not the reason the company decided to pull out of Gulfport. 90, but Gulfport Mayor Brent Warr is opposed to putting casinos inland. The Mississippi Legislature has approved inland casinos along the Gulf Coast north of U.S. Las Vegas-based Harrah’s, the world’s largest casino company, operates Grand Casino Biloxi, which was destroyed by the hurricane. The sale is expected to close by the end of the first quarter of 2006.

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