Casino sees dip in revenue, admissions
Jul. 17—The St. Jo Frontier Casino saw a decrease in year-over-year admissions and revenue as Missouri casinos emerged from the wild swings of the COVID-19 pandemic and recovery.
The casino in St. Joseph reported a 4% drop in admissions and a 1% decline in revenue for the 2022-23 fiscal year ending June 30. The Missouri Gaming Commission reported a 3% drop in admissions and a 1% revenue gain at the state's 13 riverboat casinos combined.
Pat Conway, a St. Joseph resident who serves on the Missouri Gaming Commission, said the fiscal results reflect an industrywide period of stabilization from the COVID-19 shutdowns and then the boom that followed reopening.
"The key thing to look at, especially for the last fiscal year, is the rebound from COVID," Conway said. "I think we've come back from the deficit we've seen in the last couple of years and they're back to where they were probably in 2018."
Conway said Missouri casinos faced other challenges with the post-COVID economy. Inflation cut into discretionary income for entertainment, including casino gambling. The tight job market led to staffing shortages that could limit casino options and, by extension, revenue and admissions.
"With the very tough job market, especially in bigger markets, some of the casinos are having trouble with staffing," Conway said. "So it also limits the time certain gaming activities are available on the floor of the casino."
In St. Joseph, the Frontier Casino's financial results appeared to stabilize in the first six months of 2023.
The Frontier Casino saw its admissions drop 12% in August followed by decreases of 6% in September, 12% in October, 9% in November and 8% in December. Admissions moderated in the first six months of 2023, rising 2% in January, March and June.
Riverboat casinos have been around for nearly 30 years in Missouri and won't be seeing the large revenue spikes that were common in the early days, Conway said.
"The industry as a whole is still pretty solid, but I don't think we'll see the growth levels we saw 15 years ago," he said. "I think they're at a stable point now. It's a matter of marketing for individual casinos."
The casino results have an impact on local government revenue because the city and county receive $1 from each local casino admission as well as a portion of the overall revenue.
Buchanan County projected $800,000 in gaming revenue for calendar year 2023, which is 10% lower than what was collected in 2022. The city is projecting $875,000 from its gaming initiatives fund for 2023-24, a 17% decrease from the prior 12-month period.
For the fiscal year, the Frontier Casino reported 776,381 admissions and $47.6 million in aggregate revenue. Data from the gaming commission showed that in terms of headcount, the biggest single day for the Frontier Casino was Dec. 31, when admissions reached 4,781. Also of note, the casino in St. Joseph reported more admissions on Christmas Day (2,366) and Thanksgiving (2,257) than on the day the Kansas City Chiefs played in the Super Bowl (1,486).
Greg Kozol can be reached at greg.kozol@newspressnow.com. Follow him on Twitter: @NPNowKozol.
