Unlike many Minnesota towns, Hinckley is not on a river, does not have a lake, has no terrain suitable for downhill skiing, and features no buildings that predate 1894. Lacking the usual amenities that draw tourists to a Minnesota town, Hinckley has still managed to become a place where people come to “relax… have fun.” While the town now boasts two bed and breakfasts, seven nearby campgrounds, the seventy-mile paved Willard Munger trail along the old Northern Pacific rail line to Duluth, the Fire Museum, and easy access to the Twin Cities, most visitors only stop at the Grand Casino (Hinckley Convention and Visitors Bureau. East Central Minnesota’s Visitors Guide: Hinckley, MN & Surrounding Areas. Hinckley, MN.: Hinckley Convention and Visitor’s Bureau, 2005).
The 378,000 square-foot casino ranks among Minnesota’s top hundred employers, employing more than 1,700 people. It features more than 2,100 video slot machines, 28 blackjack tables, a 350-seat bingo hall, and a 54,000 square-foot gaming floor. The 10,000 square-feet of convention facilities can accommodate up to 1,000 people and are complemented by a 1,154-seat concert venue, 5,756-seat outdoor amphitheater, a 281-room luxury hotel connected to the casino, two smaller hotels, cabins, and an RV resort (Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe. General Information: Grand Casino Hinckley. Saint Paul: Goff and Howard, Inc., 2005). When the president of Pine County Community College in Pine City has a visiting dignitary, he now takes the visitor out for dinner at the casino. A Hinckley fireman spotted Willie Nelson jogging down the sidewalk and Bill Cosby and “all the big guys” now perform at the casino. (Ausmus, Jim. Personal interview. 31 Mar. 2005). Grand Casino has taken big-name entertainers away from traditional urban locations. Fred Krohn, General Manager of the Historic Theater group which operates theaters in Minneapolis' Hennepin Avenue Theater District, told the Star Tribune that the casino “is on the horizon of being a concern to me…. If I see Elvis Costello booked at the casino, then I’ll really start to have to worry” (Justin, Neal. “Stacking the deck: Regional casinos are betting big money on popular singers and comics, a strategy that may be squeezing local clubs out of the game. Star Tribune August 22, 1996. LexisNexis February 3, 2005 <www.lexisnexis.com>).
While some worry that the town is now too dependent on the casino for its economic well-being, most believe that the presence of a casino has improved Hinckley’s economy. When plans to build the casino were first announced in 1991, then-mayor Tom Cieluch told the Saint Paul Pioneer Press: “Whatever happens will improve our employment situation. Most of the folks are sitting up here at minimum wage…. The developer promised us as much local participation as possible—whatever the market will bear” (James R. Tarbox. “Mille Lacs Chippewas to build second casino in Pine County.” Saint Paul Pioneer Press July 16, 1991. A1+). To serve the new casino, the city of Hinckley upgraded and expanded its water and sewer infrastructure—the casino now accounts for 75% of Hinckley’s water and sewer usage (Ausmus).
Shortly after the casino opened on May 15, 1992, a waitress at the downtown Marge’s Cafe told a Saint Paul Pioneer Press columnist that casino visitors “all get off the freeway and make a beeline for the casino. We don’t see them way over here” The columnist writes: “The town lies quietly along Old Highway 61 like an aged sleepy dog grown too clever to run around in the hot sun. No gambling casinos, stretch limos, or luxury busses from Iowa over here—just quiet old places like the Gustafson Lumber Co., the local Chev dealer and the Hinckley Fire Museum, where the big fire of 1894 is remembered” (Boxmeyer, Don. “Hinckley not really fired up about casino.” Saint Paul Pioneer Press June 8, 1992. B2).
Annual attendance at the Hinckley Fire Museum is now down to 7,000 from 20,000 before the casino opened, which Director Jeanne Coffey attributes to non-casino visitors avoiding Hinckley (Coffey, Jeanne. Telephone interview. March 15, 2005). In 2002, Bill Strusinski, owner of Hinckley Chevrolet, moved his dealership from Main Street to a location near the casino and Interstate 35. Strusinsky believes that “Clearly we would not have made the investment here if it had not been for the casino…. More visibility means more people and more people means more business. If we’re here they’ll drive by us” (Meryhew, Richard. “Casino brings jobs, development to Hinckley—at a price.” Star Tribune (Minneapolis) May 14, 2002. Startribune.com May 3, 2005 <www.startribune.com>).
Scott O’Donovan, the former publisher of the Hinckley News believes “It would be logical for people staying out there two or three days at a time would want to come downtown. But we haven’t evolved yet, and I don’t know how long it’s going to take to do that.” (Meryhew). Hinckley is still struggling to divert the stream of casino visitors downtown. Civic leaders have formed the “Hinckley Fire Brigade,” an organization seeking to “rekindle the spirit of 1894” by creating a “unique experience” downtown that capitalizes on Hinckley’s riveting history and offers specialty shops and restaurants (Coffey). Longtime Hinckley residents are deeply attached to their town and hope that it can retain its unique and special qualities while prospering in the future.
The old corridors of ciruclation, the rail lines and Highway 61, are now neglected. In the picutre below, taken from Highway 61 south of Hinckley, you can see the backs of the billboards that line Interstate 35.
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