Riverside Casino owners sign agreement to purchase Burlington casino, water park

Elite Casino Resorts, LLC announced it has reached an agreement to acquire Catfish Bend Casino and FunCity Resort in Burlington, bringing the properties back under the ownership of the Kehl family, who helped introduce casino gaming to the area three decades ago.

The purchase includes all assets and operations of Great River Entertainment, LLC, the parent company of Catfish Bend and FunCity. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

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For Elite Casino Resorts, headquartered in Riverside, the move represents both an expansion and a “homecoming.” The Kehl family, majority owners of the company, were central to launching Burlington’s original riverboat casino in the 1990s before selling their stake to local businessman Randy Winegard.

“This feels like coming home,” Elite CEO Dan Kehl said in a news release. “Our family’s history with Burlington and southeast Iowa goes back to the earliest days of Iowa gaming. Bringing Catfish Bend and FunCity back into the fold allows us to honor that past while building toward an exciting future of growth, investment, and community partnerships.”

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The transaction adds to Elite’s growing regional portfolio, which includes Riverside Casino & Golf Resort in Riverside, Rhythm City Casino Resort in Davenport, Grand Falls Casino & Golf Resort in Larchwood, and new developments in Illinois and Nebraska.

Kehl said current Catfish Bend and FunCity employees will remain in their roles, with opportunities for training and advancement.

“Burlington and all of southeast Iowa have always been close to our hearts,” Kehl said. “... Randy Winegard and Gary Hoyer have been great leaders for Catfish Bend and the community. We look forward to maintaining and building on their legacy.”

The Burlington resort features more than 30,000 square feet of gaming space with 600 slot machines, 18 table games, a sportsbook, poker and a high-limit room. Its hospitality offerings include three hotels with a combined 241 rooms, dining options, a spa and event spaces.

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FunCity Resort’s entertainment complex offers bowling, indoor go-karts, laser tag, arcades and a water park, while its sports facilities include basketball and pickleball courts.

Elite officials said they intend to invest in the property to further promote tourism and economic development across southeast Iowa.

The purchase will require approval of the Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission.

A spokesperson for Elite Casino Resorts said it will submit an application to the commission to start the process and then the purchase will go before the commission at a future date.

IRGC Administrator Tina Eick said the commission “will do its due diligence and go through the process to make sure everything is within the commission’s requirements under the law.”

The existing license — and Elite Casinos being an existing operator in Iowa — could speed up the review process, Eick said.

The Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission earlier this year approved Bally's acquisition of Casino Queen Marquette, allowing the transfer of the gaming license as part of Bally's merger with The Queen Casino & Entertainment, the former parent company of Casino Queen Marquette.

The acquisition and rebranding were part of a larger, multi-million-dollar plan to transition the Marquette casino from a riverboat to a land-based facility.

Should the commission approve, Elite would grow its holdings in the state to a total of four casino properties in Iowa.

Eick noted that Caesars Entertainment already owns four of the 19 commercially licensed casinos operating in the state — two in Council Bluffs, one in Waterloo and one in Bettendorf.

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