Sports betting in MKE coming in a matter of weeks!

One week after coming back from a weekend in Vegas that featured quite a bit of sports betting, I saw this headline in the largest paper in my home state.

Potawatomi Casino in Milwaukee closing Northern Lights Theater, turning it into sportsbook venue via @pietlevy https://t.co/KK8EggLSzc via @journalsentinel

— Corri Hess (@CorriHess) January 23, 2023

In a city with no shortage of music venues, Northern Lights was the only theater of its kind, seating just 600. Some acts only played the theater when they came to town, and Northern Lights also booked shows with legends and veteran performers who typically would play far larger venues in town.

In its place, Potawatomi will offer another exclusive venue in Milwaukee — a sportsbook allowing guests to gamble on sporting events, following approval from Gov. Tony Evers last February.

I've been waiting for a while to see when this was going to happen. And honestly, it makes sense for Potawatomi to lessen its live music and entertainment offerings as downtown Milwaukee is seeing a significant increase in current and future venues of that size, and is likely at a point of saturation.

But it doesn't look like the Potowatomi theater is going to complete its remodeling until next December. So are we going to be able to place bets any time before then?

While construction is underway for the permanent sportsbook, two temporary sportsbook sites will operate at Potawatomi. They're scheduled to open within the next three to six weeks, [Potowatomi Casino CEO Dominick] Ortiz said.

Located at the Fire Pit site in the northwest corner of the casino on the first floor, and on a skywalk on the property's second level, the temporary sportsbook sites will have a combined 17 kiosks that will be available 24 hours a day. Sportsbook users will have access to designated 20-minute parking spaces, and both locations will provide odds boards. The sportsbook site at the old Fire Pit will offer a full-service bar, eight high-definition TVs and an LED screen featuring each day's biggest games.

3 to 6 weeks allows those kiosks to be operating by March Madness.

In all of these cases, no betting is allowed off of tribal lands (either online or in person). I'm not enough of a degenerate to constantly feel a need to drive 90 minutes or get to the Illinois state line if I feel like wagering on some games. So with that in mind, let's get the Ho-Chunk in on the act so us in S. Central Wisconsin can have easier access.

Yeah, I differ from a lot of my ilk in my approval of and desire to have sports betting and casino fun. But it's worth having the option in this state, especially as Illinois, Michigan and Iowa get the business that we could be getting as a result of it.