Cincinnati’s Oldest Casino Looking to Relocate to Fort Wayne

The first casino to grace the greater Cincinnati, Ohio area could be moving onto greener pastures.

The owner of Rising Star Casino Resort in Rising Sun, Indiana is exploring locations in Fort Wayne, Indiana, roughly 150 miles away from its current home. 

Rising Star opened as Grand Victoria Casinos and Resort in October of 1998. It experienced a decline in revenue in 2013 once more casinos popped up in the Cincinnati area.

Packing up the bags?

Rising Star’s partner company, Las Vegas-based Full House Resorts Inc., has mulled the idea of relocation since at least 2018, according to The Enquirer’s reporting. 

“We’re looking at maximizing opportunity based on the location of the riverboat license,” said Alex Stolyar, chief development officer for Rising Star’s Las Vegas-based owner, Full House Resorts Inc. “It would take several years to get all the approvals necessary and construct a new casino.”

Riverboat casinos in Rising Sun generated close to $6 million in taxes over the last year.

Local Mayor Steve Slack confirmed that Full House informed the city it discussed “preliminary plans” to relocate its gaming facility. 

"Full House Resorts, Inc., parent company of Gaming Entertainment (Indiana) LLC, has notified Ohio County and the City of Rising Sun of their preliminary plans pertaining to the relocation of the Rising Star Casino gaming license to the City of New Haven in the Fort Wayne area,'' Slack said in a statement. 

“Because of the complex nature of this process, neither the city nor the county are in a position to offer any comments at this time.”

Potential revenue gain

Rising Star was the least profitable of Indiana’s 13 casinos to start 2024. The Indiana Gaming Commission’s revenue reports indicated the casino averaged roughly $3.2 million in gaming revenue per month. 

The economic development director of New Haven, Indiana, which is only seven miles from Fort Wayne, said city representatives spoke to Full House about opening a casino by 2028.

“New Haven is strategically located for them,” said Zach Washler. “The [only] casino within any sort of driving distance is 90 minutes away [in South Bend]. So, there is a market here.”

The population of Allen County, which includes New Haven and Fort Wayne, is substantially larger than that of Rising Sun’s Ohio County. Indiana Gaming Insight creator and editor estimated the move would result in $12-15 million in monthly revenue for the casino.

Indiana passed the Indiana Riverboat Gaming Act in July of 1993, allowing up to 10 riverboat casinos throughout the state. The first of those opened in 1995.

Indiana is now home to 13 casinos, 12 of which are state-licensed and regulated, and one of which is regulated by the U.S. National Indian Gaming Commission.