Cedar Rapids Casino, a $275 Million Development, Slates Opening Date

Posted on: February 10, 2025, 02:58h. 

Last updated on: February 10, 2025, 02:58h.

Devin O'Connor @CasinoorgDevinO Read More

Expertise: Asia Pacific Gaming, Commercial Gaming, Legislation, Politics.

The Cedar Rapids casino project that the Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission signed off on only last week already has a planned opening date.

Peninsula Pacific Entertainment, the Los Angeles-based gaming company that’s partnered with a group of roughly 80 local businesspeople in Iowa’s second most populated city operating as the Cedar Rapids Development Group, has confirmed that Cedar Crossing Casino will open on New Year’s Eve, Dec. 31, 2026.

P2E board member Jonathan Swain has been leading the gaming firm’s public campaign in Iowa. But after state officials approved the $275 million project last week after lawmakers in Des Moines folded on legislation that would have reintroduced a moratorium on additional gaming licenses for five years, P2E founder and Chairman Brent Stevens arrived in the Hawkeye State to celebrate the authorization of the venture.   

Our supporters have stayed with us through two referendums and three rounds having at it with the Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission, all of which led us to today,” Stevens said.

“We’ve been here in the great state of Iowa for over 25 years, building three world-class facilities in Dubuque, Northwood, and Sioux City, and here we are in Cedar Rapids. This is going to be the best one yet. More amenities, more places to become a part of this community, more places to be entertained. We promise to make you very, very proud with this development,” Stevens added.

About Those Referendums

Before the Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission can consider a casino proposal, the host county being targeted for the development must conduct a local ballot referendum and field majority support for slot machines and table games.

Linn County voters first authorized casino gambling in 2013. In 2021, after the initial statute expired, Linn County voters again passed Public Measure G — a referendum that permanently authorizes gaming within the county.

The company that owns the Riverside Casino & Golf Resort, which stands to be most cannibalized by a casino in Cedar Rapids, is contesting the 2021 Linn County election question.

After the gaming commission voted 4-1 in favor of Cedar Crossing Casino during its Feb. 6 meeting, Riverside attorneys filed a “motion for stay” with the IRGC for a “declaratory order” halting the project from moving forward until another referendum is held. The Gaming Commission began reviewing the petition during its virtual meeting today, Feb. 10.  

Iowa Casino Projects 

Peninsula Pacific is no stranger to Iowa. The company helped develop and/or operate three Iowa casinos, including the Diamond Jo Casino in Dubuque, the Diamond Jo in Northwood, and the since-shuttered Argosy Casino in Sioux City.

P2E and the Cedar Rapids Development Group pledge to be strong community partners in Linn County by allocating 8% of the casino’s annual gross gaming revenue for charitable purposes. The state mandates that a minimum of 3% of each casino’s win goes to nonprofits.

“The 8% generosity of the Cedar Rapids development group and P2E has been a resounding message throughout this process. The more revenue we generate, the more good we can do,” said Anne Parmley, the president of the Linn County Gaming Association that will receive the casino funds and distribute the money.