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Hurricane Katrina left an overwhelming amount of damage in its wake
of the gulf coast. Harrah's Entertainment has just announced that
it intends to reopen Grand Casino Biloxi after an elaborate
renovation project scheduled for this summer.
On Tuesday, Chairman Gary
Loveman, president and CEO of Harrah’s Entertainment, commented on
the casino rebuilding project, “We’re excited to begin the process of
rebuilding on the Mississippi Gulf Coast.”
“The Grand will return
with the kind of high-quality casino entertainment experience our
customers have come to expect. We look forward to contributing to
the restoration of the Gulf Coast's tourism industry, and to getting
our employees back on the job as quickly as possible,” continued
Loveman.
All 12 casinos along the
Mississippi Gulf Cost suffered greatly after the devastating
hurricane on August 29, 2005. Five casinos – Grand Casino, Beau
Rivage, Copa, Treasure Bay, and Silver Slipper – are all scheduled
to resume operations this year. Only three casinos – Isle of Capri,
Imperial Palace, and Palace Casino – are currently carrying on
business.
According to officials,
the renovation plans for the Grand Casino are enormous. The
casino’s Biloxi properties, the Bayview Hotel tower and convention
center will be converted into a casino and a 500-room hotel.
Visitors to the new resort will be able to dine at a steakhouse or a
300-seat buffet, relax by a swimming pool, and recuperate in a
16,000 square foot, full service spa. The casino is initially
expected to create more than 1,000 jobs.
The new vice president and
general manager of Grand Casino Biloxi, after final approval, is
reported to be Karen Sock. Sock is more than qualified. She was
the former assistant general manager of Grand Casino Gulfport.
Prior to that, she acted as vice president of human resources at
Harrah’s New Orleans.
Once the casino reopens
this summer, Harrah’s will have made their first serious motions
toward establishing an internationally recognized casino resort in
Biloxi. Anthony Sanfilippo, president of Harrah’s Central Division,
is very hopeful, “In the coming months and years we will develop our
property in Biloxi into a true destination resort, building on the
Mississippi Gulf Coast's position as a must-visit vacation spot.”
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