Gaming revenues in Indiana were even with 2014 last month, as Hoosier State casinos pulled in $186 million. Foot traffic was down 9% and per-player spend rose 11%. So you’ve got fewer but bigger-spending gamble
rs: Is that a good thing or not? An upward trend at Ameristar East Chicago was blunted with a 2% and Pinnacle Entertainment seems to be robbing Peter to pay Paul in the southern Indiana/Ohio region. Revenues at Ohio-based Belterra Park have been improving but original-recipe Belterra is down 6%.
The other headline-worthy item was a 14% surge in winnings at French Lick Resort. Despite a 1% dip, Horseshoe Hammond continued to dominate the state with a $36 million gross. Horseshoe Southern Indiana (+1%, below) and Indiana Downs (+4%) were grappling for third place, with $29 million each. Penn National Gaming has mostly stanched the 
bleeding (-2%) at Hollywood Casino Lawrenceburg and Full House Resorts‘ Rising Star (+1%) staved off Buckeye State competition. Boyd Gaming had a 2% dip in its Blue Chip business, at which someone always seems to be chipping away, while two Majestic Star boats in Gary continue to be too much of a good thing for one market: This month, it was Majestic Star I‘s turn to take a 2% dive while Majestic Star II rose 3%. Overall, the situation in Indiana is — depending on your perspective — either flat or stable.
At least Gov. Mike Pence‘s fears of rampant gambling expansion have failed to be borne out. Except for Full House CEO Dan Lee‘s idea of opening a satellite Rising Star casino in Indianapolis, there has been no mad scramble to move casinos on shore.
* Speaking of mad dashes, there was a last-minute scramble to get RFPs before the new Mohegan Sun/Foxwoods Resort Casino coalition and land that satellite casino in Connecticut. Despite 
having nixed a casino at Bradley International Airport, one of the last-minute entrants was Windsor Locks, along with Hartford itself. In the end, there were five proposals from four localities. East Hartford seems to enjoy the strategic advantage at this point, having an almost ready-made facility and what Mayor Marcia Leclerc describes as “quick time to market, extremely high visibility from the highway and easy access from the Greater Hartford region.” Expect the winner to be named in slightly over a month.
