Full House Resorts (NYSE Amex US: FLL) announced that FireKeepers Casino in Battle Creek, Michigan opened its doors to the public this morning following three days of successful simulated operations. The casino is already hosting large numbers of guests who are enjoying all of its amenities.
'This is a historic day for Full House Resorts and its shareholders and we are thrilled to finally bring this wonderful facility to the public,' said Andre Hilliou, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Full House. 'We are very proud of the management team that has been assembled and what they have accomplished in the short 15 months since construction commenced. Full House has high expectations for FireKeepers and we believe it will quickly become the preeminent destination in the south-central Michigan region. The facility will provide significant economic value for the community, the Huron Band as well as Full House Resorts. We want to congratulate and thank our tribal partners, who have worked tirelessly and diligently alongside us for nearly 15 years to make this day possible, and we would be remiss if we did not thank our shareholders for their patience and support.'
FireKeepers Casino is located at Exit 104 directly off Interstate 94 in Battle Creek, Michigan and contains a 107,000 square foot gaming floor with 2,680 slot machines, 78 table games, a 120-seat poker room and a bingo hall. In addition, the property features five restaurants, including a fine dining signature restaurant, a 300-seat buffet and a 150-seat 24-hour restaurant, as well as an enclosed 2,080-space parking garage attached to the casino. In preparation for the opening the casino has signed up over 60,000 members in its Red Hot Rewards Club and mailed out over 50,000 players club cards in advance of the opening to ensure immediate patron participation.
Full House Resorts, through its joint venture Gaming Entertainment (Michigan) LLC ('GEM'), is the manager for the casino and supervised development and construction for the Tribe. GEM will now manage the operations of the casino for the FireKeepers Development Authority, an agency of the Huron Band. GEM will be paid a management fee equal to 26% of pre-management fee income over a seven-year period which commenced with today's opening.
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