Ameristar Casinos, Inc.
today announced plans to develop a regional destination casino-hotel and
entertainment facility as part of a major regeneration project at the West
Quay in Southampton, England. In conjunction with Bravo Network Limited,
the Council’s preferred developer of the site, Ameristar will seek one of
the eight regional casino licenses expected to be available upon the
anticipated 2005 adoption of new United Kingdom gambling laws. If
approved, Ameristar will develop a first-class regional destination
consisting of the casino, a variety of dining and entertainment venues, a
200-room 4-star luxury hotel and conference facility and other leisure
amenities. Bravo will develop an 8,000-seat state-of-the-art multi-purpose
indoor arena with an Olympic-size ice rink and an additional leisure ice
rink for community ice skating. The Southampton City Council has selected Bravo as the arena developer and
Bravo has introduced Ameristar to ensure the deliverability of the
multi-purpose arena and leisure ice skating facilities, which are
dependent on considerable investment. The project’s GBP 240 million budget
will be allocated between Ameristar and Bravo, including a substantial
contribution by Ameristar toward the arena and leisure ice facilities.

“Ameristar is pleased to participate in the regeneration of Southampton’s
West Quay,” said Craig H. Neilsen, Ameristar’s Chairman and CEO. “This
project will bring an outstanding new entertainment outlet to Southampton
and southeastern England, greatly complementing the city center’s existing
retail and leisure offerings. It will also stimulate the local economy
through capital investment, the creation of approximately 1,200 quality
jobs and the purchase of millions of Pounds of goods and services from
local and regional businesses.”

At yesterday’s Southampton Council Cabinet meeting, Council Leader Adrian
Vinson issued a statement regarding the development and the pursuit of a
regional casino license. The statement is included in its entirety at the
end of this release.

Jim Brathwaite, Chairman of the South East England Development Agency
(SEEDA), said: “The South East England Development Agency welcomes this
major investment proposal for Southampton and the commitment Bravo and
Ameristar have made to it. The regeneration of the region’s town and city
centres is a key priority for SEEDA and the combination of leisure
activities proposed on this site is both innovative and complementary to
other regeneration activity currently taking place in Southampton.”

Ameristar’s portion of the development, which underpins the regeneration
of this city-center site that has laid vacant for years, is proposed to
include:

* Approximately 65,000 square feet of casino space housing 80 table games
and 1,250 slot machines, with the potential for future expansion. * A
diverse mix of dining and entertainment outlets available to casino guests
as well as other patrons. * A luxury hotel, overlooking the water and
housed in an iconic tower designed to mark the city’s waterfront location
in accordance with the city’s overall master plan for the West Quay site.
* Approximately 20,000 square feet of conference facilities with
state-of-the-art technological capabilities. * An indoor swimming pool
together with full-service luxury spa facilities.

Ameristar will develop this project consistent with the first class
approach for which it is well known in the United States, where its
facilities are recognized for their high quality design, construction and
guest service. Bravo’s 8,000-seat multi-purpose arena will also tout the
most current technology to house sporting events, concerts and other
special events. The total project cost is estimated at approximately GBP
240 million ($445 million). Ameristar’s costs are estimated at
approximately GBP 195 million ($360 million), including its contribution
towards the construction of the arena and leisure ice facilities.

Completion of the project is contingent on the receipt of planning
approval, the passage of new gambling legislation currently being
considered by the UK Parliament and the receipt of a regional casino
license under such legislation.
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