Local voters also approved raising the limit from $5 to $100 and for the addition of craps and roulette

Cripple Creek has become the first Colorado casino town to exercise its rights under Amendment 50 to expand casino operating hours and wagering limits by voter referendum.

Local voters by an overwhelming majority voted to let casinos stay open 24 hors a day instead of the previous 18-hour limit. They also approved raising the wagering limit from $5 to $100 and to allow casinos to add craps and roulette to the games they offer. All of these changes go into effect next July 1. 

Residents voted for the changes in hopes of turning around the local economy by bringing in more tourism and business, which they saw as ending the slide in revenues for local gaming businesses and the parallel threat to jobs. Unprofitability caused the Wild Horse Casino to close in September, putting 62 people out of work; and the Imperial Casino Hotel remains open after filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.

Enacted in November by a statewide vote, Amendment 50 gave Colorado’s three casino towns the option of expanding gambling. Now that Cripple Creek has voted, the towns of Black Hawk and Central City are expected to stage their own referendums soon.