With the rains of recent days, the recently-turned dirt at the location for the new racetrack in South Sioux City looks like a muddy mess.
But a few months from now, the hope is that the dirt will be turning underneath the hooves of thoroughbred race horses as the new 40-acre Atokad Park is in its first few days of construction.
Time is of the essence as the new racetrack must be finished in time for a planned mid-September one-day race schedule that will take place before construction of the Warhorse South Sioux Casino begins in the spring of 2026.
“We’re required to run a certain number of races under state statute and we need to have a track,” Lance Morgan, Ho-Chunk CEO, told the Dakota County Star. “And a lot of effort goes into building a 5/8-mile track and we really want to get that box checked and run those races this year.”
Since voters in Nebraska approved casino gaming in 2020, there has been a lot of anticipation in the area as to when a facility would be built here. Part of the deal approved by voters was that the six cities with operating tracks would be able to host casinos with their horse tracks, which included Omaha, Lincoln, Grand Island, Hastings, Columbus and South Sioux City.
Ho-Chunk has already spent close to $400 million building the facilities in Omaha and Lincoln, with a second phase to the Omaha facility recently completed and another $70 million expansion of the Lincoln facility scheduled for the fall.
Morgan said he had hoped to get the facilities built in South Sioux City sooner, but a lot of financial capital was involved in getting all three casinos planned and constructed.
“We’ve recently opened the next phase of Omaha in April and it’s doing well, and we needed to refinance our debt so we can start the net phase in Lincoln and then turn our attention to South Sioux City,” he said. “This area’s market is pretty crowded right now, so our focus now is on Lincoln.”
Getting the ball rolling on the new Atokad track in South Sioux City will give Ho-Chunk an opportunity to run four races this year and have five days of racing next year. Permanent construction will replace the temporary facilities that will be in place this year at the Atokad track as work on the Warhorse South Sioux City casino begins next year.
“We’ll have races in South Sioux this September and we’ll start the casino construction in 2026,” Morgan said. “I wish we could have done it sooner, but it’s a lot of capital that’s involved.”
Morgan said the South Sioux City casino will have slots, table games, sports betting and a simulcasting area for horse racing enthusiasts, and he’s hoping the new facility will help bring some of the $500 million that Nebraska gamblers spend in Iowa back over the border.
“Sioux City has the biggest betting market per capita in the country,” Morgan said. “We want something that will take a bite out of the market and bring that money back to Nebraska.”
