A massive new addition to downtown Louisville finally has an opening date.
Derby City Gaming Downtown is the first major gaming center to come to the downtown area. It will open on Dec. 6, 2023, according to a spokesperson.
Coincidently this opening date is 150 days before the 150th running of the Kentucky Derby.
The new venue is located at 140 South Fourth Street, it sits diagonal to the Kentucky International Convention Center.
Officials said the 43,000-square-foot building will feature 500 of the latest historical horse racing machines, a "fresh-air gaming area" and three bars, each with a unique theme. There will also be a Churchill Downs gift shop.
In-person sports betting went into effect across Kentucky on Thursday. Kentuckians can now place their bets at nine racetracks across the state.
Here in Louisville, you can place bets at Churchill Downs, as Governor Andy Beshear did this morning, or over at Derby City Gaming on Poplar Level Road.
Beshear has projected an additional $23 million in annual tax revenue from sports betting, but said it's very possible the state could see even more.
"Well, certainly every expectation across the United States has typically been exceeded, so I expect we will see more revenue than that," he said on Thursday.
The governor has said the majority of the tax dollars will go toward the state pension system, but didn't specify how it'll be divvied up. Roughly 2.5% will go toward gambling addiction resources.
Mobile betting, which experts predict could account for around 90 percent of total revenue, is expected to launch on Sept. 28.
"Online betting [will be] something I'm more likely to do than to come back down here," Andrew Glibbery, who was placing wagers at Derby City Gaming and Hotel's race and sportsbook Thursday, said.
According to experts, Kentuckians could end up spending as much as $2 or $2.3 billion annually on sports wagers -- 90% of which will come from online accounts.
Derby City Gaming and Hotel general manager Bridget Harmon said business was "nonstop action throughout the day," Thursday.
"You've been building up to this. And then finally to see it come to life was really awesome," she said.
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