Newest casino opens following day's delay

The Lakeside Casino and Resort had hoped to open for gamblers on New Year's Eve, but it didn't happen.

Casino officials said computer problems not related to Y2K were to blame.

General Manager Joe Massa said a Las Vegas computer company has been on site for a week, setting up essential systems. Technicians discovered during testing on Thursday that the computers weren't working.

"It's a surprise, because these people have done casinos all over the world," Massa said.

The casino's restaurant and hotel were open, and officials used free prime rib and champagne on New Year's Eve to keep hopeful gamblers happy.

The problems were solved and the casino opened for gambling about 3:45 p.m. Saturday.

The $50 million casino on West Lake is the third for central Iowa. It has a 1,500-passenger boat, a convention center, hotel and restaurant.

The casino includes 850 slot machines, plus table games.

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