"We had a great quarter…obviously showing the impact of ourArgosy transaction," said Peter Carlino, CEO of the locally basedcompany, during a conference call. He reiterated the commitment toreturn Boomtown Biloxi and Casino Magic-Bay St. Louis to operation"as soon as possible." Both were closed following damage fromHurricane Katrina.

Casino Magic will initially reopen with a 30,000-sf temporarycasino in the former hotel's lobby. Damaged areas of the hotel havebeen completely refurbished and will begin accepting reservationsthis fall. Boomtown Biloxi will reopen this fall with 1,100 slotmachines and about 22 table games. Asked if the company consideredselling Bay St. Louis, Carlino said, "I don't expect we'll sell,"although he expressed caution regarding the Gulf Coast, which hesaid "wasn't growing before the hurricane hit."

Asked if he would open a temporary slots facility at the PennNational racetrack in Grantville if a license were granted quickly,he said, "the rules haven't been defined yet. We have opened atemporary track that could accommodate maybe 500 slot machines. Butthere's a 1,500-unit minimum, so it would take a waiver to openthere. We're willing and anxious to get going, but the politics ofit appear not to be settled. Let's see how quickly the state canget this all together."