MotorCity Casino

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MotorCity Casino Resort
MotorCity Casino Resort
MotorCity Casino Resort
Facts and statistics
Address 2901 Grand River Avenue
Detroit, Michigan 48201
Opening date December 14, 1999
Casino type Land-Based
Theme Retro
Owner Marian Ilitch
No. of rooms 400
Total gaming space 100,000 square feet; 2,500 gaming machines; 53 table games
Permanent shows TBA
1,800 seat theatre
Notable restaurants Iridescence, The Classic Buffet, MotorCity Pit Stop, Grand River Deli
Website http://www.motorcitycasino.com

MotorCity Casino Resort is one of three casinos in Detroit, Michigan. The 4 story casino incorporates an Old Wonder Bread Building. The first 2 floors are gaming area, and the top 2 floors have been renovated to administrative offices. It also has a 3500-spot parking structure. The casino is owned by Marian Ilitch. Forbes reported in October 2006 that the gambling palace has annual revenues of $400+ million and operating income of $125 million, expected to rise to $180 million under the change in tax structure following completion of the resort.[1]


Contents

Marian Ilitch, one of the founders of the MotorCity Casino, purchased controlling interest from various minor stockholders and Mandalay Resort Group (Circus Circus Michigan)/MGM Mirage Resorts in 2005. [2] Michigan gaming laws prohibit one company from owning more than one casino property in a market, so to affect the Mandalay Resort/MGM Mirage merger the publicly traded companies had to divest MotorCity Casino, choosing to keep MGM Grand Detroit.[3] Mrs. Ilitch paid $525 million for Mandalay Resort Group's 53.5 percent interest in the MotorCity Casino enterprise. The acquisition was a merger in which Mandalay controlled Circus Circus Michigan, Inc. was survived by IH Gaming, Inc.[4]

MotorCity Casino is not a corporate entity; rather it is a dba for the Ilitch-owned and controlled Detroit Entertainment, LLC.[5]

With Mrs. Ilitch as sole owner, MotorCity Casino Hotel is reportedly one of the largest independently owned casinos in the U.S. and likely the largest and only 100 percent female-owned casino enterprise in the United States[6].

Marion and her husband Michael Ilitch are co-founders of Little Caesar's Pizza. They are vice chairwoman and chairman respectively of Ilitch Holdings, Inc. which includes the Detroit Red Wings NHL franchise and various food service and entertainment ventures. Michael Ilitch owns the Detroit Tigers MLB franchise.

Mrs. Ilitch and a business partner, Michael J. Malik, Sr., pursue other casino gambling interests outside of Michigan. Malik had been a founder of MotorCity Casino but was forced to sell his interests when the Michigan Gaming Control Board would not grant him a license. He sold his shares in MotorCity Casino to Ilitch. Among their other ventures: Gateway Casinos Resorts, LLC partnered with the Shinnecock Indians in the Hamptons, NY; and Barwest, LLC partners with the Big Lagoon Rancheria Indians and the Los Coyotes Band of Cahuilla and Cupeno Indians to develop casinos in Barstow, California.

The resort's potential should not be underestimated. Just across the river, Caesars Windsor attracts about six million visitors annually.[7] An estimated 46 million people live within a 300 mile (480 km) radius of Metro Detroit.[8][9] Since 2000, the city has seen continuous annual increases in tax revenues from its casinos; the city estimates it will collect $178,250,000 in casino taxes alone for 2007, with the casino resorts open in 2008.[10]

According to the Center for Responsive Politics, reports required by the Federal Election Commission and the CA, MI and NY Elections Officials from 2002-2006 inidicate Ilitch family members and business partners contributed more than $900,000 to political campaigns and PACs.[11]

Federal lobbying reports required to be filed with Clerk of the U.S. House of Representatives and compiled by The Center for Public Integrity indicate between $0.5-$1.3 million in was directed to Wheat Government Relations (former Congressman Alan Wheat) the primary D.C. lobbyist representing Ilitch and her various partners contract with to lobby Federal officials on gaming or related matters from 2002-2005.

A $275 million expansion is currently under construction. The hotel opened on November 28, 2007. The upper floors and upscale restaurant, 50,000-square-foot convention center, 12,000-square-foot ballroom, 1800-seat performance theater, and 4800 spot parking structure still remain under construction. Legendary hot-rod car designer Chip Foose of Huntington Beach, California had a major hand in developing the casino's new unique exterior and interior look.[2]


Bargaining employees voted to accept the proposed contract on Monday October 22. The 4 year agreement includes $1,000 signing bonus, 4% per year wage increases, preserved health benefits, and additional contract improvements.

  1. ^ Mark Tatge with Miriam Gottfried (10-09-2006).Encore Forbes.
  2. ^ Merger agreement Edgar-online (accessed 04-06-2007).
  3. ^ Mandalay Resort Group to sell holdings in Detroit casino Newsratings.com (03-24-2005).
  4. ^ Certificate of Merger Michigan Department of Labor & Economic Growth (accessed 07-01-2007)
  5. ^ Corporate Filings Michigan Department of Labor & Economic Growth (accessed 07-01-2007)
  6. ^ Ilitch Holdings, Inc. (accessed 04-06-2007)
  7. ^ Cordiano, Joseph (February 15, 2005). Government of Ontraio invests in a competitive Casino Windsor.Ontario Ministry of Economic Development and Trade. Retrieved on October 28, 2007."Casino Windsor attracts around six million visitors each year and is a key driver of the local economy."
  8. ^ Cities located close to Detroit.Time and Date world clock distances. Retrieved on September 2, 2007.
  9. ^ Audi, Tamara (September 26, 2007). What Happens In Detroit. The Wall Street Journal, B6. "But the market at issue, as MGM Mirage sees it, includes a 300-mile radius of potential overnight clients across the region,"
  10. ^ City of Detroit General Fund -Percent Change in major Revenue Sources. City of Detroit 2006-07 Budget
  11. ^ [1](accessed 04-06-2007).

v • d • e
Architecture of metropolitan Detroit (partial listing)
Downtown towers with 25 or more floors Renaissance Center • Comerica Tower at Detroit Center • Penobscot Building • Cadillac Tower • Guardian Building • Book Tower • David Stott Building • David Broderick Tower • Millender Center Apartments • Westin Book-Cadillac Hotel • Sheraton Detroit Riverside Hotel • Buhl Building • Riverfront Tower I • Riverfront Tower II • Riverfront Tower III • Trolley Plaza • One Woodward Avenue • 211 West Fort Street • Patrick V. McNamara Federal Building • 150 West Jefferson • First National Building • 1001 Woodward • Detroit Edison Plaza • Sheraton Detroit Riverside Hotel
Downtown towers under 25 floors Dime Building • Water Board Building • Washington Boulevard Building •Blue Cross/Blue Shield Service Center • State of Michigan Plaza • Fort Shelby Hotel • Courtyard by Marriott - Downtown Detroit • Coleman A. Young Municipal Center • Penobscot Building Annex • David Whitney Building • Ford Building • Fyfe Building • AT&T Building • Lafayette Building • Industrial-Stevens Apartments • Compuware World Headquarters • Greektown Casino • MGM Grand Detroit • MotorCity Casino • Fort Washington Plaza • Metropolitan Building • Maccabees Building • Detroit Free Press Building • Chase Tower • Vinton Building • Kales Building • Grand Park Centre • United Artists Theatre Building • Michigan Central Station • One Kennedy Square • Fox Theatre • The Fillmore Detroit • Detroit Masonic Temple • Wayne County Building • Michigan Building • Detroit Athletic Club • Bankers Trust • Wright-Kay/Schwankovsky Temple of Music • Savoyard Centre
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Selected parks, museums, and libraries Belle Isle • Riverfront parks • Campus Martius • Washington Boulevard • Grand Circus • Cadillac Square • Metroparks • Detroit Institute of Arts • Museum of Contemporary Art • Museum of African American History • Detroit Public Library • Science Center • Detroit Zoo • Cranbrook • The Henry Ford • Meadowbrook Hall • Fair Lane • Edsel & Eleanor Ford House
Downtown buildings organized by street Washington Boulevard • Woodward Avenue • Griswold Street • Congress Street • Michigan Avenue • Shelby Street • Lafayette Street • Larned Street • State Street • Grand River Avenue • Adams Street • Jefferson Avenue • Cadillac Square • Randolph Street • Gratiot Avenue
:See also: List of tallest buildings in Detroit
v • d • e
City of Detroit
History • Neighborhoods • Architecture • Tourism • Culture • Music • Theatre District • Sports • Media • Economy • Government • International Riverfront • Metro Detroit Flag of Detroit
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