The long wait is finally over for citizens eager to gamble at Danville’s new Golden Nugget Casino. We learned on Friday that the casino will open its doors at 4:00 p.m. on Saturday to welcome its first customers.
A spokesperson for the Illinois Gaming Board said a temporary operating license was issued on Friday. The permit will allow the casino to open on Saturday. Representatives from the Illinois Gaming Board traveled to Danville this week to see how things went when local VIPs were invited to try out the casino. Testing took place on Tuesday and Wednesday.
A Saltgrass Steak House adjacent to the casino is already open. The steakhouse and casino are always looking to hire some extra help.
{The Golden Nugget Casino has already had a positive impact on the city. In the photo above, a check for one million dollars was presented to the Town of Danville in March. The money will help make improvements along the river south and west of downtown Danville.}
Danville Mayor Rickey Williams, Jr. noted in a social media post this week that the city’s new Golden Nugget casino was made possible through the efforts of many people…” including, but without s to limit it: my predecessors, Mayors (Bob) Jones and (Scott) Eisenhauer, who worked tirelessly to make this dream a reality; our aldermen from the City of Danville over the years and our municipal team; our state legislators over the years (including) the late Senators Babe Woodyard and Scott Bennett, as well as Senator Judy Myers, former Senator and current Illinois State Treasurer Mike Frerichs, representatives of the State (Bill) Black, (Chad) Hayes and (Mike) Brown.
The Mayor’s message also thanked the Illinois General Assembly and Governor Pritzker, the Illinois Gaming Board, and local economic gurus (the late Lou Mervis and Vickie Haugen) without whom this project would never have come to fruition. said the mayor’s message. He then thanked the members of the casino’s steering committee, the Wilmot family and the Wilmorite team, as well as the Golden Nugget/Landrys teams, many local investors and unions, artisans and businesses that brought this vision to life. The Mayor thanked everyone for believing and investing in Danville.
