Iowa: Cedar Rapids casino clears final legal hurdle as Riverside drops challenge

A $275 million casino and entertainment complex project in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, has cleared its final legal hurdle and is now set to move forward. Developers say the upcoming property will generate new jobs, local investments, and significantly transform a 25-acre site that has been vacant since the 2008 flood.

Riverside Casino has decided to end its legal opposition to the project, opting not to file an appeal to an unfavorable decision last month. As a result, construction of Cedar Crossing Casino is underway and expected to conclude by New Year’s Eve 2026.

The Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission (IRGC) approved the Cedar Crossing license in February 2025 with a 4-1 vote, following the expiration of a two-year state-imposed moratorium on new casino licenses in July 2024. The project, backed by the Cedar Rapids Development Group (CRDG), had been under consideration for over a decade.

Located just north of Interstate 380 and across the Cedar River from downtown, the project site is city-owned land that has remained undeveloped since it was damaged by flooding in 2008.

Plans for the property include 700 slot machines, 22 table games, a sportsbook, three restaurants—including Clubhouse by Zach Johnson—a 1,500-seat live events venue, an arts and cultural center, and a free-access STEM lab for Linn County students.

Peninsula Pacific Entertainment is expected to operate the facility. Cedar Crossing has committed to direct 8% of its annual gross gaming revenue to charitable organizations, a figure reported as the highest in the state.

Legal efforts to block the development came from Elite Casino Resorts and its Riverside Casino & Golf Resort, located about 35 miles south of Cedar Rapids.

Elite had challenged the validity of a 2021 Linn County referendum authorizing gaming, arguing that the ballot language only applied to existing operations, not new facilities.

The IRGC had also commissioned impact studies that identified Riverside as the casino most likely to experience a decline in revenue due to the Cedar Crossing license.

In June 2025, Judge Michael Schilling of Iowa’s Eighth Judicial District ruled that the referendum was legally sound. Elite Casino Resorts did not file an appeal, thus paving the way for the project to continue.

Cedar Rapids Mayor Tiffany O’Donnell confirmed the project’s progress in a social media post this week: “Full steam ahead at Cedar Crossing Casino! With no appeal filed by Riverside, it’s official: we’re going vertical in Cedar Rapids.”