Criminal case an issue in Kansas casino decision

Criminal case an issue in Kansas casino decision

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A criminal case in Iowa became a complication Wednesday for a Kansas board that will pick a developer for a state-owned casino south of Wichita because misdemeanor charges are pending against two top executives in one of the two rival applicants.

But one of the executives said he and his colleague are ready to step away from their company's Kansas project if they're convicted of misdemeanor campaign finance violations in Iowa, though both men have pleaded not guilty.

The Kansas Lottery Gaming Facility Review Board is reviewing competing proposals from Peninsula Gaming, based in Dubuque, Iowa, and Global Gaming Solutions, of Ada, Okla., which is owned by the Chickasaw Nation. Kansas law allows only one casino in the Wichita area, and the review board plans to pick an applicant Dec. 15.

Supporters of Global's proposal suggest the legal problems facing two Peninsula executives in Iowa should disqualify that company. Brent Stevens, its chief executive officer, and Jonathan Swain, its chief operating officer, were charged in October with two misdemeanor counts each of violating Iowa's campaign finance laws.

"We strongly deny any wrongdoing," Stevens told the Kansas review board. "We're looking forward to a positive resolution of this matter. We're looking forward to it very, very soon."

The charges against the two executives involve accusations their company made donations in the name of others to Democratic Iowa Gov. Chet Culver's unsuccessful re-election campaign.

Each executive faces one count of making a contribution in the name of another and one count of failing to disclose a contribution. They're scheduled to go to trial Jan. 5 in Polk County District Court but have asked for a 60-day delay, with their attorney saying he needs more time to take statements and evaluate evidence.

Stevens sought to reassure the review board that even if he and Swain stepped away from the Kansas project because of the case, the company has a "very, very deep bench" that would allow it to complete the project.

"We've succeeded by doing the right thing, time and time again. We operate at the highest level," he said. "It will be built."

Kansas review board members struggled with how the criminal case should affect their decision. One consultant hired by the board said Kansas officials have to consider it in deciding whether Peninsula's project should go forward rather than Global's.

But review board Chairman Matt All said such issues are better left to the Kansas Racing and Gaming Commission, which will check the background of any successful applicant and regulate the casino.

"We just want to make it fair," All said of the selection process. "We're not qualified to take up those issues."

The rights to the new gambling and the equipment at the casino will be owned by the Kansas Lottery, and the state will receive 22 percent of the revenues.

The criminal case complicates the review board's work because, even if it picks Peninsula, the Racing and Gaming Commission, as the regulator, must sign off after conducting a background check. Consultants hired by the review board have projected that Peninsula's project would generate more revenue because its site is closer to Wichita.

Peninsula wants to build its $260 million project near Mulvane, about 18 miles south of Wichita, while Global Gaming's site for its proposed $280 million complex is near Wellington, another 14 miles to the south. The casino must be in Sumner County because voters in neighboring Sedgwick County, home to Wichita, rejected the idea.

The board's consultants suggested revenues at the Wellington site would be three-quarters or less of the revenues at the Mulvane site. But John Elliott, Global Gaming's CEO, said the analyses were flawed and questioned the assumption that the extra distance from Wichita would make more than a negligible difference.

"We refute the suggestion of a significant difference in revenue," Elliott said. "The issue here is that the distance isn't great."

Elliott didn't mention the criminal case involving Peninsula executives in Iowa, but on Tuesday, the chairman of the Sumner County Commission did in a statement praising Global's proposal, which the commission has endorsed.