Florida's Casinos Flourishing

TAMPA, Oct 10, 2008 (Tampa Tribune - McClatchy-Tribune Information Services via COMTEX) -- FGMG | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating -- Florida's gambling industry remains strong despite the national economic crisis, Jim Allen, chief executive of gaming operations for the Seminole Tribe of Florida, said.

"The Florida gaming market has been showing double-digit growth all year," Allen said this week at a Florida Gaming Summit in Hollywood, Fla. "We're the only investment-grade gaming company left. We will survive because we have focused on quality."

Allen's comments at the annual event at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in South Florida come as the nation's weakening economy slices into revenue in major gambling markets, including Las Vegas.

"These days, it's a lot more fun to gamble at a casino than to gamble on Wall Street," Seminole Tribe spokesman Gary Bitner said.

Nevada could be headed for its worst year in gambling revenue declines, with a 6.6 percent decrease through July, the state Gaming Control Board reported. In July, Nevada reported $997.3 million in gambling revenue, 13 percent lower than a year ago. Foxwoods Resort Casino in Connecticut laid off 700 of 11,000 employees last week.

The Seminole Tribe does not release financial details. Gambling revenue from Florida tribal facilities, including the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Tampa, was $1.6 billion in 2007, a recent Gaming Industry Report by industry researcher Alan Meister said.

People are interested in the variety of products the Hard Rock offers, Allen said.

"It's not just a casino," he said. "We are in the entertainment business. Year-to-date, the restaurant side of the business is growing ... during the most challenging economy that the restaurant business has ever seen."

Reporter Ted Jackovics can be reached at (813) 259-7817.

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