Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission to discuss Cedar Rapids casino application timeline

The Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission will review the application timeline for a proposed casino in Cedar Rapids during a meeting on Friday morning.

This follows the recent submission by the Linn County Gaming Association and its partner, Peninsula Pacific Entertainment, after the expiration of Iowa’s two-year moratorium on new gaming licenses in early July.

Doug Gross, representing the development group and Linn County Gaming Association, announced at Monday's meeting that the application will be ready for submission by the end of the month. Application for the casino project, initially named "Cedar Crossings," had been in development since 2022 but was delayed by the moratorium enacted by state lawmakers.

State legislators had the option to extend the moratorium but chose not to, allowing new applications to move forward. The commission, which oversees Iowa's 19 active casinos, decided to hire a vendor to conduct a market study assessing the potential impact of a new Linn County casino on the state’s gaming industry.

The public can attend Friday’s virtual meeting, which starts at 8:30 a.m. Details on how to access the meeting will be posted on the commission's website ahead of the event.