BNews Monthly recognized Pensacola attorney and developer Charles Liberis for his contribution to gambling in Mississippi.
The magazine pointed out that Liberis was the catalyst for multi-billion casino industry in the Magnolia State when the City of Biloxi, under Mayor Gerald Blessey, and the Europa Star filed a lawsuit against the State of Mississippi in December 1987. A ruling by Judge James Thomas that the Supreme Court declined to review allowed Liberis’s 187-foot Europa Star to dock at Biloxi’s Point Cadet while offering cruises, with gambling, to nowhere.
“They ended up being cruises to the future; three years later the state Legislature allowed the voters of Harrison County to vote on “dockside” gaming, and the measure was approved on its second local referendum, leading to the Isle of Capri opening as the first legal casino in the South on Aug. 1, 1991,” wrote BNews. “The Isle was the first to open, but only after the Europa Star tested the waters.”
PENSACOLA: Liberis tried “day cruise” gambling in Pensacola. In March 1988, the Pensacola City Council approved day-cruise service from the Municipal Auditorium pier for up to six months for his Europa Sun, a refitted oil supply boat.
By the end of 1988, Liberis had pulled out of Biloxi due to lack of demand and eventually moved the ships to St. Petersburg.
Reeves-ST Engineering Showdown
At his presser yesterday, Mayor D.C. Reeves said his meeting to discuss ST Engineering labor issues with company officials will be Thursday.
“I’ve got a meeting Thursday morning with the staff here,” he said. “There’s a large roster, but some in person, some on Zoom, depending. Obviously, they have offices everywhere. So I’ve been out and the goal was to do something the first week of September, and that’s what we’re doing.
This is what Mayor Reeves outlined in early August. He plans to meet with FloridaWest, Career Source, Pensacola State College, UWF and the School District later this month.
From Aug. 6 presser: He said ST Engineering leadership will come to Pensacola during the first week of September and “walk through that strategic plan of how we’re going to build this workforce here and what that investment is.”
The mayor added, “Then my goal would be to turn soon after that and go to FloridaWest, CareerSource EscaRosa, PSC (Pensacola State College), and UWF (University of West Florida) and have a conversation about making sure that we’re all on the same page with clarity about how we maximize this economic development investment that our taxpayers would pay.”