Big Jim’s Gambling Hall and Saloon in Cripple Creek, in operation for just three years, will close Monday night after months of financial troubles. Thirty-seven employees will lose their jobs.

Photo – Big Jim’s Casino and the Imperial Hotel in Cripple Creek. Big Jim’s will close on Monday night. Image from Google Maps. + caption
Jim Druck, owner of the slots-only casino, said his business has been losing money for about a year because of the sluggish economy, a decline in Cripple Creek tourism and the emergence of Internet sweepstakes cafes.

Before it shuts its doors, it will give away about $37,000. Because Big Jim’s 200 slot machines have accumulated thousands of dollars in players’ bets, the casino is compelled to return the money to its customers by allowing them to play for the jackpots and allocating portions of the pool to a few lucky bettors.

From Saturday through Monday, Big Jim’s will dole out portions of the $37,000 to players in randomly selected "hot seats." Druck said the casino will give away $100 to $200 every 15 minutes during business hours.

The casino will be open from noon to 3 a.m. Saturday and Sunday, and noon to 11:45 p.m. Monday.

"Basically, we will be giving away close to $800 an hour," he said. "Every penny that is there will go."

Big Jim’s opened in July 2011 amid a sluggish economic recovery that limited the amount of money people were willing to spend on entertainment. On top of that, last year’s floods damaged sections of U.S. 24, making it harder for people to reach Cripple Creek and further narrowing Druck’s customer base, he said.

The emergence of Internet sweepstakes cafes, which allow customers to play online games for points or cash, also had an effect on the casino’s revenues, Druck said. In Colorado, the Division of Gaming regulates casino-style gambling in Cripple Creek, Central City, and Black Hawk. But Internet sweepstakes cafes operate outside the state’s regulatory authority.

"People can go get a coffee and play casino games on a computer instead of driving 50 miles to come to Cripple Creek," Druck said. "It’s unregulated competition."

Big Jim’s isn’t the only casino that has been affected by the emergence of sweepstakes cafes. Lois Rice, executive director of the Colorado Gaming Association, said the emergence of the cafes in Colorado in early 2013 has negatively impacted the state’s gaming industry. In May, a state bill declaring sweepstakes cafes illegal passed in the House but failed in the Senate. For Rice, however, the fight isn’t over.

"We are hoping some of these establishments will be investigated and shut down," she said.

Since they were legalized in 1991, Colorado casinos have generated about $1.8 billion in tax revenue distributed to the state’s general fund, tourism promotion fund and historical fund, among others, according to data from the Division of Gaming. But state casino revenues have made only modest gains since falling to $716 billion at the height of the recession from $816 billion in 2007.

In 2013, Cripple Creek casino revenues totaled about $128 million, down from about $133 million in 2012.

There could be more trouble ahead for Colorado’s three non-tribal gambling communities: Cripple Creek, Black Hawk and Central City. In November, voters will weigh in on two ballot initiatives that would allow slots and game tables at the horse racetrack in Aurora and two future track sites.

According to Rice, allowing casino-style gambling at racetracks would negatively impact the gaming industries of Cripple Creek and the other two towns.

"Easy access to gambling sites from I-25 would leave no incentive to go out to the historic towns," she said. "The revenue that currently goes to tourism and historic preservation would be impacted as well."

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