Greektown Casino
Ripping Off The Sault Tribe Members For 10 Years
Campbell acquires stake in Greektown Casino
By Bill Shea
Jerry Campbell has added a 40 percent stake in Greektown Casino reportedly worth $100 million to his growing entertainment holdings in metro Detroit.
The retired chairman of Citizens Republic Bancorp in Ann Arbor is also developing the $142 million Pinnacle Race Course being built on 320 acres in Huron Township near Detroit Metropolitan Airport.
Campbell said he signed a deal Friday to acquire the portion of the casino from Greektown’s majority owner, the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians, but did not reveal details. He said a small group of investors are part of the deal, including longtime friend and business partner Jack Krasula, owner of Southfield-based executive search firm Trustinus L.L.C. and host of a show on WJR AM 760.
“We’ve had an interest in (Greektown) for a long time,” Campbell said. “We think it’s important to the area and city.
”Campbell expected more details to be released Wednesday.
The deal is between the tribe and Campbell’s Bloomfield Hills-based Entertainment Interests Group Inc.
A source close to the deal said Campbell’s group began a due diligence period 30 days ago and that period recently finished. The next step is to get state approval, he said, noting “it’s a done deal.”
The cost for the 40-percent stake is $100 million, the source said.
Campbell said the deal still requires regulatory approvals, including from the Michigan Gaming Control Board, but he’s confident because he has casino licenses in other states because of his gaming involvement on the board of directors for Aurora, Ontario-based Magna Entertainment Corp. Magna owns race tracks with casino operations outside of Michigan.
Magna halted plans last year to build a $100 million track and entertainment center by 2009 on a 212-acre site Detroit Metro, but the company abandoned those plans because of continued losses in the state.
Campbell acquired the Michigan racing license that Magna surrendered.
Former MotorCity Casino investor Tom Celani was in talks to buy a 22 percent stake in Greektown, but the deal later fell through earlier this year. The tribe had been seeking outside investment because it failed to meet state-mandated income benchmarks last year, and the gaming board had warned of a possible forced sale.
Campbell and Krasula have other ventures under way, as well. Along with several other local partners, they raised $50 million to start a Tampa-based bank-holding company, CNBS Financial Group Inc., and opened the first branch of its Community National Bank of the South in Orlando a year ago.
Other partners in that venture include Dana Cluckey, who was president and CEO of Republic Bank before its merger last year with Citizens Bancorp Inc.; Bob Liggett, owner of Warren-based Big Boy Restaurants; Kathleen McCann, senior vice president of Detroit-based Soave Enterprises L.L.C.; and Art Van Elslander, founder of Warren-based Art Van Furniture Inc.
Dan Duggan contributed to this report.
