First state-owned casino in Dodge City brings in $36.4 million in first year

? The first state-owned casino in Dodge City looks like it’s paying off for the state and Ford County, bringing in millions in revenue and attracting customers from across Kansas and nearby states, state and Dodge City officials said.

The Boot Hill Casino, which opened on Dec. 15, last year, generated $36.4 million in gaming revenue through November, according to the Kansas Lottery, which owns the casino. Revenue forecasters had predicted the Western-themed casino would bring in about $40 million annually, The Wichita Eagle reported Monday.

“I think things have gone very well,” said Keith Kocher, gaming facilities director for the Kansas Lottery. “As with any new business, it has had some growing pains, but we’ve worked through those as the year’s gone by.”

Dodge City Mayor Kent Smoll estimated that about 60 percent of the casino’s customers are from outside Ford County, including many from Oklahoma, Texas and Colorado. The casino is managed by Butler National Corp. of Olathe.

The state received $8 million of Boot Hill’s revenue through last month, with Dodge City and Ford County each getting $545,854. Another $727,805 went to the state’s problem gambling and addictions fund.

With Boot Hill also paying Dodge City more than $1 million in real estate taxes, the city already is profiting from the casino, Smoll said.

The revenue will be used on infrastructure improvements. And Dodge City will open a $50 million events center next to the casino in February, making the town “the entertainment center of southwest Kansas,” Smoll said.

Boot Hill opened with 584 slot machines and 12 gaming tables, a snack bar, a casual dining restaurant, a saloon and a general store. The second phase of the project, expected to be completed in December 2011, will double the gaming floor, add a hotel, a day spa, and two more restaurants and lounges.

The main obstacle at the casino has been finding employees, Kocher said.

“All casinos have quite a bit of turnover, and when you’re in a small community like that, that does become problematic,” Kocher said. “But they worked their way through that.”

The second of four state-owned casinos, a Penn National Gaming casino in Wyandotte County, is scheduled to open in the first half of 2012.

Another interim casino is expected to begin operating near Mulvane in Sumner County in February 2012, with the permanent casino scheduled to open in January 2013. The state hasn’t received any new applications for the fourth casino, which would be located in southeast Kansas.