Tunica
Resorts Opened for Business
The phones have been
ringing here in the South's Casino Capital with
thousands of customers calling to make sure
Tunica is operating and was not damaged by Hurricane
Katrina.
As the hurricane approached the Mississippi
Gulf Coast, many vacationers moved to Tunica,
the state's other major gaming resort. Located
just 30 minutes south of Memphis, Tunica's resort
industry was spared the hurricane's wrath and
is now inviting and welcoming the Gulf Coast's
traditional visitors to vacation getaways here.
Tunica's nine casino resorts mirror the size
and employee base of the pre- hurricane Gulf
Coast casino industry. Many of the resort employees
in Tunica and the Gulf Coast had worked at both
destinations and many friendships were forged.
Hundreds of Tunica's 15,000 resort employees
are now housing and providing support to their
Gulf Coast friends. In addition, many large
public places such as the Tunica Recreation
Center and the Grand Casino Convention Center
are also housing evacuees. Fundraising efforts
are also in full swing in Tunica to send cash
and supplies to the devastated Gulf Coast area.
"It will be months to perhaps even years
before the Gulf Coast is able to welcome visitors
to new or restored casino resorts," Webster
Franklin, President and CEO of the Tunica Convention
and Visitors Bureau, said. "We wish them
a speedy recovery and look forward to many brighter
days ahead."
Both the Gulf Coast and Tunica are key generators
of gaming, sales and employee income taxes for
the state of Mississippi, together providing
more than 15 percent of the state's total tax
receipts. Gov. Haley Barbour has said one way
to help Mississippi, in addition to sending
supplies and funds, is to keep visiting the
state.
Tunica is often referred to as the "Tunica
Miracle" as it is the fastest growing American
resort destination of the last decade. Tunica
offers 6,300 hotel rooms, big-name entertainment
and dozens of restaurants as well as three championship
golf courses. The architecturally stunning Tunica
RiverPark was recently named the Southeast U.S.'s
"Travel Attraction of the Year."
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