Harrah's Entertainment Extends Cherokee Management Contract - 2004-01-10
Harrah's Entertainment, Inc. and the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians have settled on a two-year extension of the management contract for the Harrah's Cherokee Smoky Mountains Casino. The extension of the contract to November 2004 is dependent on National Indian Gaming Commission approval.

``Harrah's Cherokee Smoky Mountains Casino has been very successful since its opening in November 1997,'' explains Harrah's Entertainment Chairman and CEO Phil Satre. ``We're honored to be associated with this project, and pleased with the extension of this mutually beneficial management contract. We believe that Harrah's Cherokee will continue to be an important factor in our brand distribution strategy.''
Read the full story at GamblingMagazine.com

Decision halts decade of work - 2004-01-10
Friday's declaration that the city will not continue to pursue a casino brings to an end 10 years of attempts to reach that goal.

Calumet City officials began their efforts to secure a casino in 1994, before state lawmakers removed a long-standing ban on legalized casino gaming in Cook County. The plan, proposed by former Mayor Jerry Genova, called for a $100 million riverboat casino and a 400-room hotel and convention center.

After the state legislature lifted the ban on Cook County casinos in 1995 -- and after spending tens of thousands of dollars for lobbyists in Springfield to push their case -- the city made a pitch to the General Assembly for a license.
Read the full story at Munster Times