Groundbreaking was expected in April 2011 with a construction time of 9 months. īuffett and Brosig unveiled their plans in 2011, describing a 68,000 sq ft (6,300 m 2), $48-million Margaritaville Casino at the former East Harrison County Industrial Park, without the involvement of Harrah's (now Caesars Entertainment). A 20-year agreement was reached for the Margaritaville brand. He was eventually able to assemble a total investment of $63 million, with '20 or 22' equity investors. Meanwhile, Brosig continued his efforts on the Back Bay site, but had difficulty raising financing due to the financial crisis and the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. Construction was suspended, however, in 2008, due to the global financial crisis and Harrah's near-bankruptcy after being taken private. Buffett was partly motivated by a desire to help the region's economic recovery from Katrina.

īuffett instead joined with Harrah's Entertainment in 2007 to begin construction on the $700-million Margaritaville Casino Resort on the site of the Casino Magic and Grand Casino, which had both been destroyed by Katrina. According to Brosig, he nearly reached an agreement to use the Margaritaville brand in 2006. He settled on the Back Bay site where the Margaritaville Casino would ultimately open. įollowing Hurricane Katrina, Grand Casinos founder Tom Brosig came out of retirement and began looking for land to develop a casino, citing a desire to help rebuild the community. Jimmy Buffett, a native of nearby Pascagoula, tried to bring the Margaritaville brand to Biloxi as early as 2000, when discussions were held on building a hotel and amphitheater on 12 acres of beachfront land between the Casino Magic and Grand Casino. Its brand was licensed from Jimmy Buffett's Margaritaville. It opened on and closed on September 15, 2014. The 68,000-square-foot (6,300 m 2) property is in the 'Back Bay' area of Biloxi. The Margaritaville Casino and Restaurant is a closed casino and restaurant in Biloxi, Mississippi in the United States.

Margaritaville casino restaurants