Cherokee Nation’s plan for $225 million resort wins battle for Arkansas’ final casino license

Oklahoma-based Cherokee Nation Businesses has won the latest battle in a contentious fight to secure Arkansas’ final casino license, potentially clearing a path for construction of a $225 million resort.

The Arkansas Racing Commission voted 3-2 on Friday to award the license to the tribe, voiding an earlier decision that gave the last of four licenses to a competitor.

The move came after the Arkansas Supreme Court last month ruled that the endorsement required for a casino license must come from elected local officials in office at the time of the application. The Cherokee Nation Business proposal had the backing of Pope County’s judge.

That ruling meant a rival, Mississippi-based Gulfside Casino Partnership, didn’t meet the state’s qualifications.

Arkansas voters approved a 2018 constitutional amendment to create four casinos. Since then, casinos have opened at racetracks in Hot Springs and West Memphis, and in Pine Bluff.

Cherokee Nation said it hoped to move closer toward building Legends, a planned $225 million casino and resort with 1,100 slot machines, 32 table games and 200 hotel rooms near Russellville in northwest Arkansas.

In June 2019, the tribe announced it was partnering with Legends — a company founded by the Dallas Cowboys owner and the late George Steinbrenner, who owned the New York Yankees — to manage design and development of the Pope County casino.

Earlier this year, investment firm Sixth Street Partners acquired a 51% stake in Legends, with the co-founders splitting a 40% ownership share, according to Sportico. That investment valued Legends at $1.35 billion.

“We are eager to put forth our large-scale development plans to the Russellville Planning commission, and ultimately, for litigation to come to an end so that we can proceed with construction,” Cherokee Nation Businesses CEO Chuck Garrett said in a statement.

But Gulfside wasn’t ready to concede, citing pending court cases and questioning whether Legends Resort and Casino LLC — the company set up by the Cherokee Nation — qualified for the license. Cherokee Nation operates 10 casinos in Oklahoma.

“Legends has no casino gaming experience and, therefore, is not a qualified applicant,” Lucas Rowan, Gulfside’s attorney, said in a statement. “This issue is pending in circuit court, and we expect it will be resolved through the legal system.”

The license battle has been fought in the courts for the last several years.