Detroit's Greektown Expansion Plan Approved

DETROIT, MI (AP) - State regulators gave final approval to Greektown Casino's permanent casino, hotel and entertainment complex August 8.

The unanimous vote by the Michigan Gaming Control Board cleared the way for Greektown to begin construction of a 400-room hotel, a 3,100-space garage and an enclosed pedestrian walkway over Lafayette Boulevard connecting the buildings. The existing temporary casino will be expanded.

Casino officials hope to open the complex by September 2008, about six months after MGM Grand Detroit Casino and MotorCity Casino open their permanent facilities. Each casino will feature 400-room hotels, 100,000 square feet of gaming space, restaurants, entertainment facilities, meeting rooms and parking decks.

The existing casino in the middle of the Greektown entertainment district will remain open during construction, Mike Leinweber, whose company will build the permanent Greektown facility, told the gaming board.

Expanding the 6-year-old casino instead of building a new facility will reduce the cost of the project from $450 million to $200 million.

The board approved Greektown's final plans after it announced that the casino's revenues fell 8 percent last month compared with July 2005.

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