The State Racing and Gaming Commission today gave the City of Dubuque and the owners of the Dubuque Diamond Jo riverboat casino until next month’s meeting to work out a dispute over a proposed hotel/convention complex. Boat owner, Penninsula Gaming Company, wants to scale back an agreement they made to build the hotel and convention center on city-owned land near the boat. The city doesn’t want a smaller project and negotiations had stalled. Commission members today asked both sides to resume negotiations to come up with a compromise. Dubuque City Manager Mike Van Milligan believes they can work it out.Milligan says city officials believe it’s important to have the hotel and convention center to draw people to Dubuque.Peninsula attorney Loraine May, former chairwoman of the State Racing and Gaming Commission, says the dispute between the two isn’t as bad as it seems.The commission approved the license renewal for the Diamond Jo on the condition the two sides return next month with a plan they both can agree on.
