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DES MOINES — More bills dealing with new casino projects are floating around the Iowa Capitol, but the bill’s author said they should not impact Cedar Rapids.
Republican lawmakers in both chambers of the Iowa Legislature on Wednesday introduced legislation that would prohibit a city’s urban renewal plan from including gaming projects that were awarded a state license this year.
Earlier this month, state regulators awarded a license to Cedar Crossing Casino & Entertainment Center, a $275 million project planned for northwest Cedar Rapids.
The planned location for that project is in an urban renewal district, city officials confirmed Wednesday afternoon.
Iowa law allows local governments to establish urban renewal areas to redevelop blighted areas, fund private economic development and finance construction of low- and moderate-income housing, according the state’s nonpartisan Legislative Services Agency. The primary funding source for urban renewal areas is tax increment financing.
Cedar Rapids officials said the casino project is in an urban renewal area, and that they are working to understand the new legislative proposal while considering their next move.
While the property is located in an urban renewal area, casino developers have said they are not seeking tax incentives for the project.
Because developers do not plan to seek tax incentives, the newly proposed legislation should not impact the Cedar Rapids project, Iowa Sen. Scott Webster, a Republican from Bettendorf, told The Gazette Thursday afternoon.
A hearing on the proposal is scheduled for 11 a.m. Thursday at the Iowa Capitol.
The state’s approval of the Cedar Rapids casino license came shortly after an attempt by lawmakers to stop the project. A proposed 5-year moratorium on new casinos in Iowa passed the Iowa House but was not considered by the Iowa Senate when a key lawmaker there said the proposal did not have enough votes.
Developers and dignitaries in Cedar Rapids held a groundbreaking ceremony Feb. 7, the day after the Racing and Gaming Commission awarded the casino project a license.
Webster managed the proposed moratorium bill in the Senate. His Senate district includes Rhythm City Casino Resort in Davenport and Isle Casino Hotel Bettendorf, whose revenues could be affected by a Cedar Rapids casino, according to market studies.
“In light of a series of bills that appear to target Cedar Crossing, we will do as we have from the beginning: Follow the process, adhere to the law and act in the best interest of the thousands of Linn County voters who twice approved gaming in our community,” Cedar Rapids Mayor Tiffany O’Donnell said in a statement.
The bills are Senate Study Bill 1159 and House Study Bill 208.
The Gazette’s Tom Barton contributed to this report.
Comments: (515) 355-1300, erin.murphy@thegazette.com
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