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There are many people in
Greenville, Mississippi and the Mid-Delta anticipating the date of
May 8th. On that day the Delta Blues Casino is
officially slated to break ground. In addition, the month of May
will bring the construction of the Bali Hai Casino to the area as
well.
Finally, the casino market in Greenville, that
for a number of years has seemed to be in its twilight, is getting
some fresh and aggressive competition.
The Delta Blues Casino project is going to begin
construction prior to receiving the approval of the Mississippi
Gaming Commission. In order to show the commission its good
intensions, they will begin construction by erecting a convention
center. The actual casino will be built directly thereafter.
Four years ago,
the Mississippi Gaming Commission had actually granted approval to
the Delta Blues project. The approval was revoked after years
passed without any forward movement on the casino project. The
casino operators are hoping to put things in motion again with a
show of good faith.
Downtown Greenville could use another casino, more specifically one
that includes a water park in its construction plans. A lack of
attractions has caused the downtown district to suffer in years
past.
Luckily the current trend
for Downtown Greenville has been mass improvements. Main Street was
recently refurbished, complete with two blocks of brick prints in
historic downtown. There was even talk of the straightening and
widening of the notorious Washington Avenue. Now, the much
anticipated construction of the Delta Blues Casino begins next
Monday.
These promising signs of improvement indicate that Downtown
Greenville has the potential to become greater than it is now. The
Delta Blues Casino is only the beginning. Within the next year or
so, Washington County could have as many as five operating casino
venues.
Greenville can look forward to a casino market
that has more pull than just drawing in locals. It would be over
ambitious to expect a great revival as recently seen in Tunica, with
hundreds of blossoming business, thousands of new jobs, a boom in
housing, improved roads, and county citizen tax breaks.
Becoming a market worthy of competing with
Vicksburg and Tunica is quite a step forward.
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