Monarch to Open Long-Awaited Expansion of Black Hawk Casino

Casino operator Monarch Casino & Resort, Inc. will finally unveil a portion of the newly added facilities at its Monarch Casino Resort Spa property in Black Hawk, Colorado.

In a statement issued Monday, the company said that it has obtained a Temporary Certificate of Occupancy from the City of Black Hawk that enables it to open floors 1-13 of a new 23-story hotel tower at the resort.

Phase I of the expanded hotel-casino complex will now open to the public on November 19 at 9 am local time. Monarch said that it expects to launch the upper part of the tower, that is to say floors 14-23, by the end of the year.

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Phase I of the expansion project includes approximately 250 luxury hotel rooms and suites, an expanded gaming floor, three new dining outlets, convention space, and other amenities.

The second phase includes more hotel rooms and suites that will bring the total to 516, a concierge lounge, and a spa and pool facility located on the hotel tower’s top floor.

Commenting on opening the expanded facilities at their Black Hawk property, Monarch Co-Chairman and CEO John Farahi said that they are confident their product will “meet the expectations of the market’s upper segment.”

Long-Delayed Opening

Monarch acquired its Black Hawk property, formerly Riviera Black Hawk Casino, in 2012 in a $76 million deal. After it added the casino to its portfolio, the company announced a $400-million-plus expansion project to add a new hotel tower and other amenities and expand existing ones.

The expansion was expected to open last year. However, the company announced in October 2019 a new opening timeline that would have seen the hotel tower swing its doors open in the first quarter of 2020. Renovations on existing casino space and other facilities were expected to finish by the second quarter of the year.

Monarch said last year that a litany of factors hampered its Black Hawk project, including construction disruptions and delays, increased materials and labor costs, materials and labor availability, disagreements with the contractor, environmental restrictions, and issues with securing zoning and building permits.

Monarch expects the expanded resort to create 1,000 new permanent jobs ones all new and expanded facilities are fully operational.

Monarch is expanding its Black Hawk property as Colorado gears up for more gambling options after the legalization of sports betting in the fall of 2019. Earlier this month, state voters approved Amendment 77 that allows Black Hawk to scrap or increase a $100 single-bet limit and approve new casino games such as baccarat and pai-gow tiles.

Concurrently, residents of Black Hawk voted in favor of the proposed gambling expansion. The new rules are expected to take effect as early as May 1, 2021.

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