Wild Rose Jefferson officially opens with grand celebrations, sober words

Festive mood at official opening of Greene County casino

0
1038

The Wild Rose Jefferson casino staged its grand opening celebrations Friday, and the event combined both the glitter and hoopla of a gaming spectacle and the gravity of speeches by notable personages.

Iowa Governor Terry E. Branstad was on hand to mark the casino’s grand opening celebrations, and he took the opportunity to tout his Homebase Iowa program for returning military service personnel.

“It is great to see a small county like this who has this kind of spirit,” said the six-term governor from Leland, Iowa. “I’m proud to be here and to see this new facility open, to see the other economic success that’s going on here in Jefferson and Greene County. I just want to say that I hope every county in Iowa can follow your example. We are seeing a lot of counties that are moving in the Homebase Iowa direction to really welcome service people here and find good jobs for them. You all should be very proud of yourselves.”

It was not stated whether the Wild Rose entertainment complex has hired any returning service people.

U.S. Senator from Iowa Chuck Grassley noted the economic boost the new business will bring to Greene County and the region.

“This is all about jobs and economic development,” said the six-term senator from New Hartford, Iowa. “There are a lot of good things that have happened in a lot of small towns in Iowa that nobody would have thought 20 years ago. A facility like this is one example of some of those things that have happened in rural Iowa. A lot of good paying jobs that nobody would have thought of keep communities like this alive and keep Iowa prospering.”

Greene County landowner Kim Reeder, who sold the land along U.S. Highway 30 where the Wild Rose Casino now stands, was also on hand to share the festive day. He reflected on the origin of the idea of a casino, events center and hotel in Greene County.

“When I told someone about this idea, they told me it was the craziest thing they’ve ever heard of, so I kept it quiet for some time,” Reeder said. “Weeks went on and as they thought about it, they saw the enthusiasm that people of Greene County got for this project. They got behind it 100 percent. It was not just me, not one person or committee, it was all the people of this county that got behind this project.”

More than 75 percent of Greene County voters approved the casino project in a special referendum held in August 2013, and the Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission approved a licence for the Grow Greene County Gaming Corp. (GGCGC) in June 2014.

Chuck Offenburger, retired Des Moines Register columnist and a leading promoter of the Jefferson casino, was on hand to celebrate the casino’s official opening and GGCGC’s attainment of its goal.

“After all the hard work that has gone into the campaign and the building of this marvelous place, it is great to see our dreams coming true,” Offenburger said.

Construction of the $40 million complex began one year ago. Wild Rose Jefferson is expected to create an estimated 275 jobs and add about $7 million annually in payroll and benefits to the local economy.

Along with direct economic benefit in terms of jobs, the casino promises revenue-sharing gains to neighboring counties. Operating agreements between qualified sponsoring organizations and casino operators—such as the agreement between GGCGC and Wild Rose Entertainment—require at least three percent of each year’s gross receipts to go toward charitable purposes, according to Iowa gambling laws.

The agreement between GGCGC and Wild Rose increases this portion to five percent. Eighty percent of this money—four of the five percent—will stay in Jefferson and Greene County, and the remaining one percent will be spread among the other six neighboring counties.

With projected annual revenues of $30 million, the casino potentially could generate grant funding for Greene County’s six contiguous neighbors as high as $300,000. Greene County is adjoined by Boone, Dallas, Guthrie, Carroll, Calhoun and Webster Counties.

According to one of the many partygoers at Friday’s grand opening celebrations, even beyond the cash value of the new casino, it promises to foster a higher value: the value of community.

“You think of weddings, reunions, high school reunions, all of things this can bring to the local community besides jobs, and it’s such a pleasure,” said the woman who did not give her name. “Go Greene County!”

ThePerryNews.com photos by Mark Summerson

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.