Speculation arose this week that the KISS casino was no more, after the 10.1-acre property was listed for sale for $15.9 million.<\/p>\n
\nThe development is still moving forward and the city is working with us. The owner of the property has always had someone that’s had the property listed, so I still feel like we’re in a good place,”<\/strong> Moore told ABC\/CBS affiliate WLOX<\/i>.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n The Margaritaville Casino closed in 2014 amid a dispute between the casino operator and then-landlord regarding a planned hotel. The quarrel led to a hotel never being erected. Mississippi’s casino laws require that gaming facilities be accompanied by lodging.<\/p>\n
The disagreement was only part of the problem that led to Margaritaville’s demise. The location of the Back Bay casino remains isolated and disconnected from Rt. 90\/Beach Boulevard — the main drag where Beau Rivage, Hard Rock, Harrah’s, and Golden Nugget casinos are located in east Biloxi.<\/p>\n
Margaritaville subsequently moved to the Biloxi shore and opened a family-friendly non-gaming resort in June of 2016. The resort is the former Casino Magic.<\/p>\n
Guarded Agreement<\/b><\/h2>\n The Margaritaville property was eventually sold in early 2019 to Arizona-based real estate firm RAM Group. Moore says he has an understanding in place with RAM to continue pursuing his $200 million casino undertaking despite no progress being made at the site for more than two years.<\/p>\n
Moore has a most understandable excuse for development setbacks in the pandemic. He maintains that his company has a first right of refusal on any sale RAM seeks.<\/strong><\/p>\nMoore’s 2020 blueprint for Rock & Brews Casino called for a 300-room hotel with balconies overlooking Biloxi Bay. The casino plan included more than 1,000 slot machines, 36 gaming tables, and a sportsbook.<\/p>\n
KISS Involvement Unknown<\/b><\/h2>\n KISS members Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley co-founded the Rock & Brews restaurant chain in 2012. Today, the company has 17 locations, most of which are in California and Florida.<\/p>\n
Moore has been quiet on KISS’ actual involvement with his casino project. But the band’s influence would be quite apparent.<\/p>\n
Along with the casino and hotel, the original Rock & Brews Casino plan featured a 3,000-seat concert hall. That would almost double the seating capacity of Hard Rock Live!, which is currently Biloxi’s largest casino theater.<\/strong><\/p>\nKISS recently wrapped up its latest Las Vegas Strip residency<\/a> at Caesars Entertainment’s Planet Hollywood. The band is now on its “End of the Road World Tour.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A $200 million casino project tied to American rock legends KISS remains on track. That’s despite development impediments caused by COVID-19 and the land where it is to be built recently being listed for sale. In 2020, local developer Tom Moore reached a deal with the “Rock and Roll All Nite” icons to use their […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":25,"featured_media":206060,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[62,1],"tags":[],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n
KISS Casino in Biloxi Still a Go, Developer Says Despite Property Sale<\/title>\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n\t \n\t \n\t \n \n \n \n \n \n\t \n\t \n\t \n