CASINO GAMI NG ON THE MISSISSIPPI GULF COAST
by
Klaus J. Meyer-Arendt, Ph.D.
Introduction
The Mississippi Gulf Coast has been a tourist destination since prior to Mississippi being admitted
into the United States of America. The popularity of the Coast for tourism has waxed and waned
over the years in response to economic cycles, hurricanes, and alternative trendy destinations. In the
1990s, a new wave of tourism in the form of legalized casino gambling 1 swept the state, especially
the Mississippi Gulf Coast. In late 1998, there were eleven operating casinos on the Coast and
several more under construction. The development of the casi no industry has not been without
controversy in the coastal counties, and the impacts have been mixed. Economically, there has been
a rejuvenation as new jobs were created and the demand for housing increased tremendously. In
terms ofenvironmental impacts- highway traffic, hurricane evacuation planning, and socio-cultural
impacts-casino development has borne a cost. Traditional patterns of tourism have been altered ,
and no comprehensive land-use analysi s offuture casino development exists. This chapter is written
to : I ) provide a brief background of gambling on the Mississippi Gulf Coast, 2) discuss the
Mississippi Gaming Control Act of 1990, 3) present a chronology ofcasino development, 4) evaluate
the economic impacts, 5) assess how casino development has altered historic patterns of tourism
development, and 6) examine some of the implications for urban planning and coastal management.
Background of Gambling along the Mississippi Gulf Coast
In spite of its reputation as a conservative "Bible 13elt" state, Mississippi has a long heritage of
gambling activity. Gambling houses ex isted in nearby New Orleans prior to the 1803 Louisiana
Purchase, and by the early 1820s America's first large 24-hour-a-day casino opened in the heart of
New Orleans' French Quarter (Asbury 1938). With increasing restrictions upon gaming in the late
1820s, gambling diffused out from the city, both upriver along the Mississippi River and eastward
along the Gulf Coast toward Mobi le (Asbury 1938). In addition to the riverboat gambling towns of
Natchez and Vicksburg, the Mississippi Coast- notably Biloxi-became a venue for open gambling.
This legacy survived into the 20th century, and the colorful history is one ofaltemating tolerance and
prosecution of gambling establishments. D uring Prohibition in the 1920s, an offshore sand shoal
ten miles south of Biloxi-Dog Key- was renamed the Isle of Caprice and developed into a
gambling resort by local entrepreneurs (Powe ll 1988; Rucker and Snowden 1988; Sullivan et al.
1985). An enterprising ship captain, Pete Skrmetta, ferried visitors lo and from the casino on the
boat, the Pan American, until the island disappeared below the sea in the 1930s. Also, transportation
to the island was provided by two other converted schooners, the Jolly Jack and the Silver Moon.
1
The tenn "gambling" refers to the activity of wagering, whereas "gaming" refers to the industry.
Because this article focuses upon gambling as an activity (i.e., a form of tourism), the term
"gambling" is mostly used. Where reference is made to the casino industry, or regulation thereof,
the term "gaming" is used.
29 1
Another schooner, the Tivoli, provided transportation when needed . On May l. 1925, W. H. I lunt
received a quit-claim deed for Dog Key, and it is interesting to know that the Hunt family has
continued to pay taxes on the Isle of Caprice. In the event this submerged shoal will one day
reappear, the Hunt family wi ll once again be the legal owners. Illegal gambling resurfaced along the
mainland fol lowing World War II, but in the late 1950s and early 1960s. raids by authorities more
or less closed the illicit industry in the coastal counties.
As coastal tourism began to wane in the 1980s, plans fo r land-based casinos and "gambl ing cruises
to nowhere" were proposed. Some cruise sh ip s lips were constructed, channels were dredged, and
several boats actually began operation in the late 1980s. Although portions of M ississippi Sound
technically lay beyond Mississippi's 3-mi le territorial limit, court rulings stated that gambling
excursions had to enter the open Gulf of Mexico. This in effect lim ited comfortable cruises to
heavier, seaworthy ships such as the Pride of Mississippi, which began steaming into the Gulf in
1989. Fo r several reasons, including U.S. C ustoms investigations of violatio ns of the federa l
Gambling Ship Act of 1948 and low passenger counts, the Pride r?f Mississippi moved to Texas and
became the Pride of Galveston (Morris 1989). Anticipating local approval of land-based casinos.
the old Bil ox i Hilton (now the Broadwater II Hotel) in the late 1980s constructed a building-named
the Casino- fo r gam ing purposes. A lthough legalization of land-based casinos was rejected by
voters, gambling cruises (such as the LA Cruise) sailed into the early 1990s.
The Mississippi Gaming C ontrol Ac t of 1990
Fol lowi ng a severe economic crisis in Mississippi during the late 1980s, state legis lators drafted what
became the Mississippi Gami ng Control Act of 1990. T his act paved the way for legalized gaming
as long as certain provisions were met: l) no gambling was permitted on Mississippi soil but only
on "vessels" which could be docked along a shoreline, and 2) these docks ide sites were restricted to
counties along the Mississippi Ri ver and along the Coast of Miss issippi Sound, so long as most
county residents did not object (Meyer-Arendt 1995).
For the Gulf Coast, the l 990 Gaming Act specified that gaming si tes were restricted to "south of the
three (3) most southern counties ... ", the intent being to augment beach touri sm with beachfronl
casi nos. Voters in Jackson County rejected docks ide casino gambling, so only Hancock and
Harrison Counties were affected by the s ite requ irements. T he s horeline of those two counties which
face south onto Mississippi Sound consists mostl y of public artificial beaches, including the famou s
"longest man-made beach in the world" fronting Harrison County for 26 miles (Graber 1986;
Meyer-A rendt 1992). Because j urisdiction over M iss issipp i's "tidelands'' (land below the natural
high-water line) fell under the office of the Secretary of State, that offi ce advised limiting casi no sites
to non-sand-beach segments of the sho refront. This severely restricted potential s ites to existing
ports and harbors and a few areas where (often illegal) nears hore rec lamation activity had occun-ed
in the past. Land speculators quickl y scouted and optioned potential casino sites at places such as
Biloxi's dec lining seafood district (at what used to be known as ··front beach of Point Cadef'),
Bilox i's downtown waterfront area, deve loped shorefront areas along 13iloxi' s West Beach touri s t
strip, and port and harbor facilities in other Harrison and Hancock County communities
(M eyer-A rendt and Abusalih 1994).
Subsequent more liberal interprl:!tations o fthc 1990 Gaming Act permitted the siting of cas inos along
bayshorcs of the two coastal counties. e.g., St. Loui s Bay and Back Bay of Bi lox i, and again land
292
~
11
I
speculators scouted out potential sites. And although navigable rivers flowing into the bays (or the
Sound) were al so interpreted as technically permissible sites so long as tidal influence exists,
proposed sites in such locales have been controversial for a number of reasons, including potential
negative impacts upon fringing wetlands.
Patterns of Casino Development
When dockside gaming finally became a legal industry in 1992, the Mississippi Gulf Coast was
quick to embrace it (Meyer-Arendt. 1998, in press). The first three casinos in the state opened in
I3iloxi in August 1992: the Isle of Capri, the President, and the Biloxi Belle- and a fourth (Casino
Magic) opened the following month in Bay St. Louis (Table I). Three of these four pioneering
casinos were actual riverboats, and Casino Magic was built on a barge. All four were relatively
small, with less than 40,000 square feet of gaming space; but all four were to spearhead a
rejuvenation of the Gulf Coast's economy. The fifth casino on the Coast (and the seventh statewide)
was Gul fport's Grand Casino, which opened in May 1993. With over I 00,000 square feet of gaming
space, 2000 employees, 2000 slot machines, and an entertainment section for children, the Grand
set a new standard for casino constniction on the Coast as well as in the state.
Geographically, the five pioneer casinos were in different locales, all of which were to set the pace
for further casino development and land-use change (Figure I). The following paragraphs discuss
the casino development patterns and impacts associated with the Coast" s five pioneers.
1. The development of Casino Row. The Isle of Capri, which soon replaced its vessel with a
barge-mounted casino, was the first to locate in Biloxi• s declining oyster-canning district, where over
sixty acres ofland had been reclaimed from Biloxi Bay over the past century (Meyer-Arendt 1995).
Except for the J. L. Scott Marine Education Center of the Gulf Coast Research Laboratory, which
had been built on the site of a former U.S. Coast Guard Station, the remainder of the site was
optioned as casino properties. The name ·'Casino Row" quickly replaced " front beach of Point
Cadet", and by January 1994, three more casinos (Casino Magic Biloxi, Lady Luck Biloxi, and
Grand Casino Bilox i) had opened. Two additional casinos (Baily's and Castle One) had property
options at Casino Row, but development never occurred because of title and financi al problems.
Casino Rov..- had still become the biggest casino strip bet\veen Las Vegas and Atlantic City, and even
the J. L. Scott Marine Education Center offered its fac ilities for lease. The Palace Casino, which
opened in April 1994, is two blocks north of Casino Row at the foot of the old bridge over Bilox i
Bay, never quite succeeded at selling itse lf as a northern extension of Casino Row. It has been on
the verge of closing for many months.
2. Casino development in downtown Biloxi. The downtown Biloxi shorefront contains a mixture
of commercial, touristic, and public recreational fa cilities, just as it has since the early nineteenth
century. Historically tourists arrived in Biloxi by steamboat or train (later trolley and car) and stayed
in downtown shore front hotels. During the Roaring Twenties, the grandest of these was the Buena
Vi sta Hotel ("the grande dame of the South"), at the western edge of downtown. By the 1950s, the
shorefront had changed greatly as a result of the widening of U.S. Hi ghway 90 (Beach Boulevard)
293
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,· , · 'cc1~'t~·ttrt~riF''' Tt·'·:·~ ,·squii~"Fe~tr tsra.t·r Table$
JE&t~iti~;~/l
Town
c'~urity" Oper.itTn~:1c~s,iri~
1 Biloxi
Harrison Isle of Capri - Biloxi
(08/01/92)
32,500
2 Biloxi
Harrison President Casino
(08/13/92)
38,000
3 Biloxi
Harrison Biloxi Belle
(08/28/92 •• CLOSED 01/03/95)
28,000
4 Bay St Louis
Hancock Casino Magic
(09/30/92)
5 Gulfport
Harrison Grand Casino - Gulfport
6 Biloxi
Order
,'\·:>('·
''?'."""''
:,;.;::.
1, 151
42
1,363
956
46
807
39,500
1,103
53
1,169
(05/14/93)
105,000
2,005
95
2,197
Harrison Casino Magic - Biloxi
(06/05/93)
47,200
1,206
43
912
7 Gulfport
Harrison Copa Casino
(09/10/93)
26.000
711
26
463
8 Biloxi
Harrison Lady Luck Biloxi
(12/13/93)
22,000
647
23
554
9 Lakeshore
Hancock Bayou Caddy's Jubillee Casino
(01/07/94 -- MOVED 10/23195)
9a Lakeshore
Hancock Bayou Caddy's Jubilation Casino
(12/21195 •• CLOSED 07/16/96)
27,500
10 Biloxi
Harrison Grand Casino - Biloxi
(0 1/17/94)
110.000
1,940
103
2,311
11 Biloxi
Harrison Palace Casino
(04/11/94)
32,040
718
34
535
12 Biloxi
Harrison Treasure Bay Casino
(04/28/94)
56,000
1, 189
56
1.163
13 Biloxi
Harrison Gold Shore Casino
13 Biloxi
Harrison Boomtown Casino
1.0111
371
(06/20/94 •• CLOSED 05/14/95)
(07/18/94)
39,200
33,6321
901
. ;,6if.air,~i~,.~~in\!Ji·
Table 1. Casinos in Coasta l Mississippi, l 992- 1996. Data courtesy Mississippi Gaming Conuni ssion.
a
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- --·-'
County Area
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+
Urblllnized Area
1--._,,,
+
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W•ter
Interstate Highway
U.S. Highway
i +
'r-
State Maintained Roe<! !
Major Road
Rall
lL __ J
Casino - Open
Casino - Proposed
Casino - Under Construction
Casino - Closed but Si te atilt Uoena.d
Airport
Federal Installation
Stennia Space Canter Buffer Area
Figure 1. Gulf Coast Casino Development.
-=
which was accompanied by several hundred feet of land reclamation. The Buena Vista Motel,
Baricev's Seafood Restaurant, and more touristic and commercial businesses were constructed here
in the 1950s and 1960s and stood until 1992 (except for brief destruction by Hurricane Camille in
1969). In the early 1990s, the Biloxi Belle Casino owners bought many of the eastern downtown
shorefront properties, converted the Buena Vista Motel to a casino resort motel, and razed most of
the remaining structures (including the stately but now irreparable Buena Vista Hotel) to turn them
into parking lots for the small paddlewheel casino. There were mixed feelings among local residents
as old historic urban landscapes were shaped into a new casino landscape. A second casino-the
Gold Shore-opened nearby in June 1994 after much opposition to a giant glittering neon sign at its
entrance. Both casinos declared bankruptcy in 1995 because of smaJI sizes and inability to compete
with Casino Row and other large casinos. The pattern begun by the Biloxi Belle continues, however,
as Las Vegas casino mogul Steve Winn 's Mirage Resorts Corporation is presently constructing the
$500-miJiion Beau Rivage Casino, the largest hotel/casino complex yet, expected to open in early
1999. There are also options to construct a neighboring casino to the east.
3. Casinos as part of the traditional tourism landscape. Since a primary objective of legalized
gambling was to offset a decline in tourism, it seemed logical that casinos would be sited in tourism
zones. However, most post-World War II tourism infrastructure (motels, restaurants, and other
entertainment facilities that comprise the "recreational business district," or RBD) had been built up
along the sand beach which had been declared off-limits to casinos by the office of the Mississippi
Secretary of State. Th us the only potential sites along RBDs such as Biloxi 's West Beach were those
like the Broadwater Marina, which had been constructed in front of the Broadwater Hotel. The
President Casino steamed into this site in August 1992. Recently sold to the Primadonna
Corporation, the Broadwater complex includes two hotels (the Broadwater and the Breakwater II,
the fom1er Biloxi Hilton), the casino, and an eighteen-hole golf course. (The larger, bankrupt,
barge-mounted Gold Shore casino was moved in to replace the smaller, popular President casino in
1995.) Similar non-sand beach sites existed nearby at the Sea-n-Sirloin complex and an adjacent
marina next to the Rodeway Inn. The former became the site of the Treasure Bay casino, which also
acquired the popular Royal d'lbcrville Hotel in April 1994. The adjacent marina site, acquired by
the Lone Star Corporation, was later sold and may yet be developed as a casino. Because of limited
site availability, this trend of building casinos in traditional tourism zones may be reaching its limit.
4. Casino development in ports and harbors. A fourth trend, pioneered by the Grand Casino
Gulfport, is the siting of casinos in existing ports and harbors. In Gulfport, where nearly half of all
residents were opposed to gambling. the Grand Casino negotiated a deal with the Mississippi State
Port Authority, an autonomous state body which oversees shipping and commercial operation at the
state port. A small fishing boat harbor was relocated to make room to float the giant barge-mounted
Grand close to Beach Boulevard. A four-story parking garage was built adjacent to it, on state port
property. The annual lease that the Grand pays the state port is in the millions of dollars. In
September 1993 a second casino-the Copa, formerly the steamship Pride of Mississippi- was
leased space in the port. Unfortunately for the Copa, which required deep-draft access, the lack of
good sites left it tied up among the banana boats arriving from Central America. A closer site and
new road access were negotiated, but the Copa' s small size and restricted site (the port does not lease
land for hotel construction) did present some problems in the early stages of its establishment.
296
Efforts to allow casinos on Gulfport city property adjacent to the state port (such as Marine Life,
where Donald Trump held an option until 1996) have been met by much local opposition.
At other port and harbor facilities, such as Long Beach and Pass Christian, local residents so far have
resisted efforts by developers to bring in casinos, but that could still change in the future. The only
other example of a port/harbor casino was at Bayou Caddy (near Lakeshore) where the Jubilee
opened in January 1994. Billing itselfas the "closest casino to New Orleans" and hoping to intercept
arriving Louisianans, the Jubilee nonetheless suffered from a poor location. In spite of"do<wnsizing"
to a smaller vessel (renamed the Jubilation) in late 1995, the Bayou Caddy Casino folded in July
1996.
5. Casino development along bayshorcs and tributaries. A final trend among Gulf Coast
casinos, pioneered by Bay St. Louis' Casino Magic, has been to locate along the shores and
tributaries of the two estuarine bays: St. Louis Bay and Back Bay of Biloxi. Although Casino Magic
enjoys a fairly good location (easily accessible to Louisiana gamblers arriving on U.S. Highway 90)
and non-controversial site (the rectangular pond in which the casino vessel floats was dredged out
of low-elevation coastal pine "uplands"), other bayshore sites have been-and are- more
controversial. The only other true bayshore casino is Biloxi 's Boomtown, which opened in July
1994 amidst the shrimping fleets and ice houses of Biloxi's Back Bay. Although the city of Biloxi
rezoned the entire Back Bay waterfront east of the Interst~te 110 bridge as suitable for casinos, the
seafood industry is concerned about losing space and facil~ties. Local neighborhoods are concerned
about encroachment by the casino development and associ'ated traffic. Boomtown Casino has in fact
separated its property from the neighboring residences by constructing a 12-ft-high concrete wall.
The Imperial Palace, another giant casino complex replete with a 30-story hotel, a 7-story parking
garage, and an antique-car museum, opened in 1998, faced similar land-use conflicts, especially with
the long-established Back Bay Mission which finally agreed to sell. Additional sites, such as two
in the town of D'Iberville on the north shore of Back Bay, have been debated not only because of
residential encroachments but also because of wetlands impacts. Local environmental organizations
have opposed the destruction of a relatively small number of acres of wetlands in spite of mitigating
offers to save, improve, or create many times that amount of wetlands in more interior locations.
Two casino developers (Casino World and a Circus Circus-Pine Hills joint venture) when applying
for pem1its for sites on the north shore of St. Louis Bay, had to address concerns regarding wetlands
disturbance and the spoiling of otherwise pristine coastal landscapes. Some sites, already rejected
by the Mississippi Gaming Commission, were close to Interstate-IO (upper Jourdan River, upper
Bernard Bayou), where developers had hoped to become "intervening opportunities" for gamblers
headed for other coastal casinos. Although future casinos may well be developed in these "inland"
bayshore locations, opposition for a number of reasons may delay their development.
Economic Impacts of Casino Development
Since the arrival of the casinos in 1992, the economic impacts have been tremendous. According
to the most recent data (MS DECD 1996), the Gulf Coast casinos generated nearly $700 mill ion in
gross gaming revenues (or "win") in fiscal year 1995, or over 43 percent of the total gaming revenues
in the state. The casinos have generated about $60 million per month since January 1994 (MS
Gaming Commission 1996) (Figure 2). The fact that these revenues have been fairly level for nearly
297
three years, in spite of the addition of half a dozen casinos, helps explain the recent casino
bankruptcies (and also provides some clues as to future trends if even more casinos decide to enter
the competition). Revenues per casino dropped throughout 1994-from a high of over $6 million
per month to less than $4 million per month (Figure 3). Industry "shake-out" led to two bankruptcies
in 1995 and one in l 996, and revenues per casino have rebounded to over $5 million per month.
The "flatness" of the casino revenue curve (Figure 2) is partly attributed to the growth oflegalized
gambling in Louisiana, which affects the make-up of out-of-state visitors to the Mississippi Gulf
Coast. Louisiana tourists, who at one time comprised the largest segment of out-of-state visitors,
have dropped to only 12 percent of all out-of-state visitors, at least according to a random sampling
taken at the Coast welcome centers (Brady 1995). Legalized gambling in Louisiana also serves as
an "intervening opportunity" for Texas gamblers, who used to be a significant portion of coast
tourists. On the other hand, Mississippi is still the closest gaming venue for points east, and
Floridians (33 percent) and Alabamians ( 14 percent) are the top out-of-state visitors. Midwesterners
are also well represented (19 percent). The number one reason for visiting the Mississippi Gulf
Coast: to visit casinos (Brady 1995).
In tenns of revenues flowing into the state and local economy, the 8 percent state gaming tax on
coastal casino revenues yielded $55.4 million in state revenues in fiscal year 1995. City/county
revenues (Biloxi, Gulfport, Bay St. Louis, Harrison and Hancock Counties) totaled $24 million for
the same period, according to the Mississippi Department of Economic and Community
Development (MS DECD 1996). In a more recent study, the Harrison County Development
Commission (HCDC 1996) cited Harrison County gaming tax collections at over $25 million for
calendar year 1995.
There has been a growth in tourism and tourist spending in the early 1990s. Casinos attract
approximately 50,000 visitors per day (Rychak 1995). Surveys show that visitors spent $55/day in
the casinos on average and also $231/day on food, lodging, and entertainment in late 1995, an
increase of 19 percent over Spring 1995 (Brady 1995).
The munber of hotel rooms increased from 6,000 in 1992 to over 9,000 in 1996 (McKinney 1996).
Nearly 2,600, or about 28 percent, of these rooms are in casino hotels (either pre-existing hotels
bought by casino operators or newly constructed hotels). The two newest casino.- hotels-the
Imperial Palace and the Beau Rivage-will acid 2,950 additional rooms by early 1999 (Myerson
1996). The two casino-hotels plaimed for the north shore of St. Louis Bay-Casino World and
Circus Circus-plan to construct 1,850 rooms (Myerson J 996). Additional casino hotel expansions
may add another 2,000 rooms, thus bringing the Coast total to nearly 16,000 rooms by the end of the
decade (Myerson 1996), a 167 percent increase over 1992. Hotel occupancy rates rose from 55.8
percent in 1992 to 69.3 percent in 1995 (HCDC 1996), and hotel employment has risen accordingly.
Hotel sales tax collections in Harrison County increased 150% between fiscal years 1993 and 1995
(HCDC 1996). Harrison County sales tax receipts for 1995 were 143% higher than in 1992 ($11.1
million vs. $7.8 million), and preliminary statistics from 1996 show a continuance of that trend
(HCDC 1996).
298
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While automobiles are still the dominant choice of transportation for arriving visitors, charter buses
and charter flights have increased greatly since 1992. The Mississippi Gulf Coast received 1J,601
motorcoach tours (79 percent of the state's total) in fiscal year 1995 (MS DECO 1996). These
charter buses carried nearly 450,000 passengers, who spent approximately $35 million. Furthermore,
2,432 of the tours (or 21 percent) spent the night on the Coast (MS DECO 1996). At the
Gulfport-Biloxi Regional Airport, the few local commuter flights have now been augmented by up
to 20 charter flights daily, mostly from the Tampa, Florida area. The airport is making
improvements worth $4.5 million in 1996 and 1997 in anticipation of additional growth, including
the addition of jet service. By the end of the decade, the Airport Authority anticipates spending
another $4.5 mi Ilion on an international terminal (McKinney 1996).
The number of permanent residents on the Mississippi Gulf Coast has increased, and this has also
stimulated the economy in many ways. At least 20,000 new residents were added to the coastal
counties between 1990 and 1995 (Rychak 1995), and a growth rate of 1.5 percent-or 1,500 new
residents annually-is projected into the near future (McKinney 1996). The total civilian labor force
rose 17 percent from 1992 to 1994 alone, from 136,250 to 159,270 (Myerson 1996), although this
growth rate has now leveled off (HCDC 1996). The number ofautomobile registrations in Harrison
County alone increased 10 percent from 1992 to 1994 ( 140,622 vs. 128, 102), although this growth
rate has also slowed in 1996 (HCDC 1996). Similar increases have been noted for Hancock County
and Jackson County, as many casino employees took up residence in the Ocean Springs area. The
average house price on the Coast jumped from $68,500 in 1992 to nearly $90,000 in 1996.
Additional measures of direct and indirect impacts of casino gambling upon the economy are
employment statistics. The coastal casinos currently employ 12,375 workers (MS Gaming
Commission, 1996), most ofthem residents of the coast. According to standard "multiplier" indices,
their take-home pay may "double" as it trickles through the Coast's businesses and services. In 1993
the average casino worker's wage was $ 16, 115, according to the South Mississippi Planning and
Development District.
Casino Development vs. Historic Patterns of Tourism Development
Coastal tourism development generally follows certain set patterns, and such patterns have been
characteristic of historic tourism development along the Mississippi Gulf Coast (Abusalih 1994;
Meyer-Arendt 1992). ln a typical seaside city, tourism development takes place along the waterfront
closest to the central business district (CBO) and then gradually expands laterally along the
waterfront if tourist demand is sustained (Meyer-Arendt 1990). In Biloxi, Gulfport, and-to lesser
degrees-Bay St. Louis, Pass Christian, Long Beach, and Mississippi City, tourism development
followed such a scenario. With the construction of Keesler Air Force Base and a postwar boom in
tourism (stimulated in large part by construction of the 26-mile-long artificial sand beach in 1951 ),
tourism and entertainment facilities expanded laterally along the beachfront. In Biloxi, for example,
West Beach quickly became the core area of Biloxi's recreational business district (RBD) (Figure
4). Smaller RBD strips developed between stretches of residential zones throughout the Harrison
County shoreline (see Figure 1).
301
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Figure 4. Casinos of Harrison County, Mississippi, 1996 (Meyer-Arendt, 1997, in press).
Casino gaming has modified traditional patterns of tourism. Unti l casinos, most visitors to the
Mississippi Gulf Coast came to recreate along the various RBDs from Bay St. Louis to Biloxi. Now
fom1er non-RBD areas have been, or are being, developed into casino venues, and tourists/gamblers
are being funneled to areas where they never went before. While this new trend can be positive, as
in Casino Row where the diminishing seafood-canning district has been turned into a gl itzy Las
Vegas-style strip along U.S. Highway 90, it can also be negative. Residential areas, fom1erly
separated from the hustle-and-bustle and traffic of tourism, are now increasingly part of it. The
historic seafood industry, now largely relegated to Biloxi' s Back Bay, is in danger of being displaced
by casinos and tourists because the entire waterfront is zoned as suitable for gaming. And as
environmental ly sens itive bayshore sites become developed in St. Louis Bay and Back Bay ofBilox i,
the increase in traffic and tourism infrastructure (hotels, parking lots) may create additional stresses
upon wetlands and the creatures that live in or near them.
For the Mississippi Gulf Coast, the intent of the original Gaming Act of 1990 was to offset declining
tourism by injecting it with a shot that would rejuvenate the industry. This was accomplished by
siting casinos in or near the recreational business districts where hotels, restaurants, and
entertainment facilities already existed. By dispersing tourists/gamblers to casinos in remote
locations may not only result in negative social and environmental impacts in those locations, but
also in a decline in tourism in the traditional tourism areas.
Implications for Urban Planning and Coastal Management
Casino gambling has stimulated a rejuvenation of the tourist industry along the Mississippi Gulf
Coast, but there also has been a cost. Casino construction has disrupted residential neighborhoods
and seafood industry zones. Traffic has increased tremendously, creating extensive backlogs al rush
hours and at weekends. At Casino Row, Beach Boulevard was six-laned (plus turning lanes) , and
proposals for new east-west highways as well as Interstate-! 0 access roads are being debated.
Architectural review boards must approve development plans so that the rich antebellum resort
landscape is not degraded. However, skyline changes and casino support infrastructure are
modifying the look of the Coast. and this is not welcomed by many. Land-use plans should
encourage discrete land-use zones and serve to minimize "casino spillover" and preserve pre-existing
land-use patterns. Models ofresort development offer insights into land-use patterns at other seaside
locations, and communities such as Biloxi, Gulfport, and Bay St. Louis could benefit from them.
In terms of social impacts, there is the expected increase in gambling addiction and criminal activity
as a result of cas ino gambling. It is important that gaming revenues be channeled into counseling
centers and increased police protection to minimize adverse social impacts.
Coastal management issues include such things as beach maintenance and preservation,
environmental protection, water quality monitoring, and hurricane preparedness. All of these issues
have been stressed with the growth of the casino industry and the associated rise in the numbers of
visitors.
1. Beach preservation. Along the HaITison County beach, efforts have been made to preserve the
beach for tourism by raking it daily, establishing dunes to minimize sand loss by winds, constructing
a boardwalk over the seawal l, and building more restroom facilities. Periodic beach clean-up has
303
not completely solved the problem of excessive litter and glass on the beach, however. And in spite
of efforts to preserve the beach from casino encroachment, the beach has been used for dredge-spoil
disposal (east ofthe Treasure Bay Casino) and for constructing a fancy hotel entrance (complete with
transplanted mature live oak trees) at the Grand Casino Gulfport and at the new Beau Rivage.
2. Environmental protection. Wetlands and water bottoms are protected from disturbance by state
and federal laws. All developers are required to obtain Section 404 permits from the U.S. Army
Corps ofEngineers, and various state and federal agencies may raise objections to permits circulated
to them for approval. The primary state agency is the Mississippi Department of Marine Resources,
which is responsible for the protection of the state's coastal wetlands (Grove 1993). In spite of care
taken to ensure that state and federal wetlands and water bottoms regulations are met, there are still
public concerns over broader environmental changes that may accompany casino construction and
increased tourist flow. Recent studies have shown that wetland losses (albeit few) have occurred in
spite of the Mississippi Wetlands Protection Act of 1973 (Oivanki et al. 1995). The reclamation and
modification of nearshore water bottoms has been part of Mississippi's coastal heritage for I 00 years
(Meyer-Arendt 1995), and casinos appear to be continuing the trend. Approximately 23 acres of
water bottoms have been "shaded" by casinos and many more have been dredged (Holloman and
LaSalle 1996). In preparation for the giant Beau Rivage casino (at the old Biloxi Belle site), 2. 7
acres of water bottoms will be reclaimed. To receive permission, Mirage Resorts paid close to $2
million to help acquire 4,225 acres of wetlands in Hancock and Jackson Counties for a state-owned
land trust (McCann 1996).
3. Water quality. Another concern about the gaming industry has been the potential degradation
of water quality by point-source and nonpoint source pollution generated by the casino industry. Due
to the paucity of pre-casino baseline data and no plans for comprehensive water-sampling projects
(Holloman and LaSalle 1996) detailed water-quality impacts of casinos may never be well
understood. Although the casinos have so far made efforts to minimize discharges directly into the
water, including the installation of various parking-lot runoff-control measures (Holloman and
LaSalle 1996), the establishment of a regular, systematic water-quality monitoring program is
considered highly important.
4. Hurricane preparedness. Under the direction of the late Wade Guice, former director of the
Harrison County Civil Defense Council, hurricane preparedness has been ably managed since before
(and especially after) Hurricane Camille in 1969. In addition to mandatory evacuation during strong
hurricanes, vessels were required to move to safe shelter, such as the Back Bay of Biloxi. The first
three casinos had barely opened in August 1992 when Hurricane Andrew passed nearby in the Gulf,
prompting a call for vessel evacuation. All three casinos were (at the time) self-propelled vessels,
and all three evacuated to Back Bay. (Luckily, Hurricane Andrew passed Mississippi with little
impact.) By 1993, when barge-mounted casinos (such as the Grand Casino Gulfport) became the
new standard for floating casinos, the evacuation of such "vessels" began to be seen as unrealistic.
The floating casinos required up to four towboats to move them (towboats that would have to come
from New Orleans) with even light winds possibly causing the casinos to strike the bridges over the
bays; and the open bridges would wreak havoc with automobile traffic during periods of evacuation.
In 1994, a study was commissioned to propose a badly needed hurricane preparedness plan for the
floating casinos (Community Associates 1994). The resultant study recommended a variety of
304
options. including the use of different strategies by the individual casinos (Community Associates
1994 ). In 1995 . however. a plan was adopted whereby all casinos would construct in-place mooring
systems and design their superstructure (the portion over the barge) to withstand 155-mph winds.
the equivalent of a Force 4 hurricane. The first real test of this plan came in September 1998. when
Hurricane Georges blew in as a force 2 Hurricane. Except for some snapped cables at the Treasure
Bay Casino. the in-place mooring system worked fine.
Summary
The introduction of casino gam ing to the Mississippi Gulf Coast has led lo many changes in the
coastal economy. in the coastal landscape. and in the coastal way oflifc. These changes have been
both positive and negative. Economic impacts appear to have been largely positive. whereas social
and env ironmental impacts appear to have been mixed. ft is not easy to quantify the impacts of
casino gaming. but it is important to plan properly for further casino development. The laissez-faire
planning that prevailed along the sleepy Mississippi Gulf Coast in days gone by will not ensure
sustainable lc,·els of quality-of-lite nor of tourism very far into the future. Now that the casino
industr)· has become an integral part of the coastal tourist economy and the coastal landscape. il is
important that residents (and their representatives and elected officials) work closely with land-use
planners. coastal management officials. and casino representatives to ensure that the economy. the
cultural heritage. and the physical environment be preserved for the future.
References
Abusalih. A. A., 1994. Casinos. Tourism Rejuvenation. and Coastal Landscape Impacts in Biloxi.
Mississippi. Master's thesis. Dept. of Geosciences. Mississippi State University. Starkville.
Asbury. 1-1 .• 1938. Sucker's Pro?,ress. New York: Dodd. Mead. & Co.
Brady. J. E.. 1995. A.fississippi Gu(( Coast Fall /995 Visitor Profile. TTaITison County Tourism
Commission. Gui 1·port.
Community Associates. 199-t. Casino Vessd HuITicnne Evacuation Alternati ves. Biloxi f.July].
Graber. P.H. F.. 1986. The Law of the Coast in a Clamshell: The Mississippi Approach. Shore and
Beach 5./ (1): 3-6.
Grove. R .. 1993. No Gambling on the future of Wetlands. 1\/ississippi Outdoors 56 (3): 22-27.
Harrison County Devdopmenl Commission (HCDC). 1996. 1996 Economic Indicator Report and
miscellaneous statistics provided by Ms. Chris Taylor. Sept. I0. Gulfport.
Holloman. C. Z. and M. W. LaSalle. 1996. Nonpo int Source Pollution Effects o.fDockside Gwning.
MSU Coastal Research and Extension Center. Biloxi.
McCann. N .. 1996. State Land Traded to Golden Nugget in Exchange for 4.225 Acres of Tidelands.
Mississippi B11sinessJournal /8(31): 1. 12.
305
McKinney, K ., 1996, Number fuel gambling 's optimism, The Sun Herald, April 11.
Meyer-Arendt, K. J. , 1990, Recreational Business Districts in Gulf Coast Seaside Resorts, Journal
of Cultural Geography 11 (1): 39-55.
Meyer-Arendt, K. J. , 1992, Human-Environment Relationships along the Mississippi Coast,
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Meyer-Arendt, K. J. , l 995a, Beach and Nearshore Sediment Budget of Harrison County,
Mississippi:- A Historical Analysis, Open-File Report 43, Office of Geology, MS Dept. of
Environmental Quality, Jackson, MS, 65 pp.
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Development Review 13(4): 27-33.
Meyer-Arendt, K. J., 1998, From the River to the Sea: Casino Gambling in Mississippi, Chapter 13
in Casino Gambling in America: Origins, Patterns, and Impacts, (K. J. Meyer-Arendt and R.
Hartmann, eds.), Cognizant Communications Corp., Elmsford, NY pp.151-167.
Meyer-Arendt, K. J. & A. A. Abusalih, 1994, Casino Gambling on the Mississippi Coast: Landscape
Change and Coastal Management Issues, in The Coast: Organizing for the Future, pp. 209-213.
Conference Proceedings, The Coastal Society, 14th International Conference, April 17-21 ,
Charleston, SC.
Mississippi Department of Economic and Community Development (MS DECO), 1996, Fiscal Year
1995 Economic Impact for Tourism and Recreation in Mississippi. 86 pp. Jackson.
Mississippi Gaming Commission, 1996, Miscellaneous statistics provided by Mr. Warren Strain,
Office of Public Relations, Jackson, Sept. 10.
Myerson, A. R., 1996, A wave of casinos hits Mississippi's Gulf Coast, New York Times. July 9,
Cl. C7.
Oivanki, S. M ., K. J. Meyer-Arendt, & B. Yassin, 1995, Analysis of Land Use and Land Cover
Changes on the Mississippi Coast: l 950s-l 992, Transactions, GulfCoast Association ofGeological
Societies 45: 467-473.
Powell, M. H., 1988, "Skeet": The Public Life of Walter Hemy Hunt...American. Biloxi, MS:
Shaughnessy Printing Co., Inc.
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Mississippi: The Formation and Disappearance of the Isle of Caprice, Transactions, Gu(l Coast
AssociaUon of Geological Societies 38: 343-349.
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306
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Biography
Klaus J. Meyer-Arendt was a geographer at Mississippi State
University with research interests in coastal environments. Hjs
research ranges from physical geography, coastal processes and
shoreline erosion, changes in wetlands, to cultural geography
(historical human impacts upon coastal areas, patterns of tourism
development). His regions of expertise include the U.S. Gulf
Coast, Mexico and Central America, and the Caribbean. In
addition, Klaus Meyer-Arendt was the coordinator of the
Mississippi Geographic Alliance, an organization supported by
the National Geographic Society and the State of Mississippi and
dedicated to improving geographic education in K-12 education.
Born into a shipping family in Hamburg, Germany, he emigrated-with his parents- to Brazil
and on to the United States where he arrived at the age of five. His parents moved to various
Northern and Western states (Ohio, Utah, and Colorado) before settling in the foothills of the
Coast Range in Oregon. After stints of living in California and Alaska's Aleutian Islands and
traveling throughout Latin America, Klaus completed his BA degree in Geography and a
Certificate in Latin American Studies at Portland State University in 1975. For graduate studies,
Klaus went to Lousiana State University to pursue his interests in the cultural-historical
geography of Latin America, and he received a MA degree in Geography in 1979.
While a master's student at Louisiana State University, Klaus developed a strong interest in coastal
studies. He worked on various projects in the Mississippi River delta and along the state's Barrier
Tslands. From I 9n until I 9R3 he worked at Coastal Environments, Tnc .. in Baton Rouge,
Loui siana, as a coastal morphologist and coastal management advisor. ln addition to working on a
m~jor land loss study funded by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Klaus worked on various
researchand management projects throughout the Louisiana Coastal Zone. Jn 1983 he returned to
LSU to complete a Ph.D. dissertation on patterns and environmental impacts of coastal resort
development around the Gulf of Mexico. A Ph.D. in geography was conferred in 1987.
Dr. Meyer-Arendt came to Mississippi State University m1987 after short teaching stints at LSU and
Southeastern Louisiana University. His research quickly shifted to the Mississippi Gulf Coast, where
he has conducted several research projects for the Mississippi-Alabama Sea Grant Consortium and
the Office of Geology of the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality. Since casino
307
gaming was introduced to the Mississipp i Gulf Coast during the period of active coastal
research, Klaus began to track the patterns and impacts of this new industry. Several publications resulted from those research projects, and synopses have been presented at meetings of
the Mississippi Academy of Sciences, the Association of American Geographers, The Coastal
Society, the American Planning Association, and the National Council for Geographic
Education.
Klaus J. Meyer-Arendt also maintains active interests in tomism research, especially in Latin
America. In addition to publishing on resort development in Mexico and the Dominican
Republic, Klaus has conducted several MSU field trips south of the border. In 1994 he received
a prestigious Fulbright Senior Scholar Research Award to study domestic tourism development
and shoreline erosion along the north coast of Yucatan, Mexico.
Dr. Klaus J. Meyer-Arendt, formerly geologist at Mississippi State University, assumed the post
of Professor and Chair, Department of Environment Studies, University of West Florida, 1100
University Parkway, Pensacola, Florida 32514. Telephone 850-474-2746 (dept.), 850-474-2792
(direct), Fax: 859-857-6036.E-mail:[email protected]
308