Until the issue will be solved, Churchill downs will receive a ‘certificate of suitability’ which allows the company to start the process of establishing a casino. The ommission added that Churchill Downs can request an extension of the certificate beyond the 180-day limit.

Churchill Downs Incorporated CEO, Bill Carstanjen, commented: “We’re in Ohio, we’re in Illinois, we’re in Kentucky. We’re in a lot of surrounding states, and we hadn’t found an opportunity for Indiana.

Indiana is a fantastic state with a transparent, easy-to-understand regulatory infrastructure. So, for us as a major US gaming company, we finally found our opportunity to get involved.”

The $240m project, known as the Queen of Terre Haute, is to be built on nearly 21 acres of land on Honey Creek Drive. The casino building will include 56,000 square feet of gaming space featuring 1,000 slots and 50 table games.

The project includes a 125-room hotel and according to the company, it would create over 500 full-time and part-time jobs. Additionally, the construction project would generate around 1,000 jobs.

At the proposal’s introduction in September, it was mentioned the project would generate $190m in annual economic impact for the region.

Three other proposals were presented to land the gaming licence. Hard Rock International and Premier Gaming Group were eliminated after the first round of voting and, initially, Lucy Luck Gaming was awarded the gaming licence.

However, the Commission denied a renewal of its licence in June and a timeline for a decision on Lucy Luck’s appeal is not yet known.