RUSSELLVILLE, Ark. — In a 5-2 decision, the Arkansas Supreme Court ruled in favor of Gulfside Casino on Thursday, which means the fourth casino license is back up for grabs.
The ruling is a bit of a surprise for those who have been following the Pope County casino saga closely.
"To say it's been a fight would be an understatement," Arkansas Racing Commission spokesperson Scott Hardin said. "I think it was a bit of a surprise just in what general expectations were across the state."
With that ruling, the license held by Legends Casino is now void.
"Then the court said, 'Yes, we agree that they can't have two separate names on the application as the one with the experience versus the name on the actual casino license,'" Hardin said.
Gulfside and Legends said the process hasn't been easy for both parties involved in this.
"Definitely, definitely challenging," Gulfside attorney Casey Castleberry said.
Cherokee Nation Businesses CEO Chuck Garrett agreed.
"It has been challenging, it really has been," Garrett said.
To fully understand this situation, you'll need to understand years of history in Pope County. Four casino licenses were issued five years ago, with Pope County receiving the fourth.
For over 18 months, Castleberry said Gulfside held the license for the county before another state's supreme court ruling took it away.
This recent challenge was brought on by Gulfside, challenging a vote by a circuit court. After today's ruling, it's back to square one.
"We felt confident from the beginning that we were right on this issue," Castleberry said. "We feel vindicated with this decision today."
Both parties tell us they already have plans for their casinos. Legends already has an office in Russellville and has land purchased for this.
"At this point, we're totally dedicating our energies and resources to pursuing the license," Garrett said.
Castleberry said there are 18 calendar days ahead of them during which either party can challenge the ruling. After that, he said the racing commission will likely have to change their rules to have another application window.
Hardin said he hadn't heard of anything, and the commission could quickly decide to open this backup.
"Depending on how quickly they want this to move, I mean, you could see the license out the door by January 1," Hardin said.
Both sides tell us they're waiting on the next step from the racing commission and are looking to what's next.
"We don't want litigation, that litigation is not good for anybody," Castleberry said. "Gulfside is committed to building a casino in Pope County. That's what we want to do."
In the meantime, both parties must collect another letter of support from one of three entities in Russellville: the mayor, the county judge, or a resolution of support from the quorum court.
In the past, Legends has secured a letter from the county judge and said they're confident they can do that again.
Gulfside said they plan to discuss this with all three.