Historical horse racing could be coming to Park City

WICHITA, Kan. (KSNW) — The Kansas Racing and Gaming Commission received an application from Boyd Gaming Corporation on Tuesday to develop and operate a new historical horse-racing gaming facility in Park City.

“The development of a $160 million privately funded entertainment facility in Park City,” said David Strow with Boyd Gaming. “It would be called Diamond Jo. So this will be a 1,000-slot casino, but it will be so much more than that. We wanted to create an experience that went well beyond that.”

Boyd Gaming Commission says it is proposed to go just south of Hartman Arena in Park City.

The facility, which would be called Diamond Jo Park City Casino, would feature 1,000 historical horse-racing units, meaning gamblers would bet on races that have already finished.

In addition to the casino floor, Diamond Jo would feature a steakhouse, a FanDuel-themed bar and grill, and a convention space.

The facility, Boyd says, would be built with 100% private financing and would create nearly 600 jobs in the community. Boyd says the property would estimate $90 million per year in economic activity.

Local developer George Laham says his group is proposing to do the build around the actual gaming facility. It would include a steak house, 500 seat venue and other amenities.

“When we started looking at sites, we did a site analysis throughout Sedgwick County,” said George Laham. “And so we spent a lot of time looking at a lot of sites. And we feel that this is a wonderful site. Park City is making things happen up there, and they’re moving forward, and that’s where we want to be.”