Ohio Gambling Expansion - Pollstar News

Gambling opportunities in Ohio have gotten more diverse with the mid-December openings of Miami Valley Gambling in Lebanon and Hard Rock Rocksino Northfield near Akron.

Photo: Jason Miller / Invision for Hard Rock International / AP Images

Former Cleveland Browns quarterback Bernie Kosar, Hard Rock International Chairman Jim Allen, and Hard Rock Rocksino's Brock Milstein and Jon Lucas conduct the legendary guitar smash grand opening of Hard Rock Rocksino Northfield Park in Ohio Dec. 18.

Horse racing tracks with slot machines, dubbed racinos, are also in the works for Youngstown, Cincinnati and Dayton areas in 2014.

While racinos don’t offer card or other table games, they make up for it via enhanced customer service and competitive payouts, according to David Schwartz of the Center for Gaming Research University of Nevada Las Vegas.

Hard Rock Rocksino made a big splash Dec. 18 with its 2,200 machines, grand opening concert featuring Joan Jett And The Blackhearts and its $1 million in rock memorabilia on its walls.

Miami Valley Gambling opened Dec. 12 and features 1,600 machines, racing, dining and other perks among its customer incentives.

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