HAMPTON — Developers of the new Hampton Beach Casino complex have secured another key approval, paving the way for a 52,000-square-foot charitable gaming casino.
The town Zoning Board voted 4-1 on May 15 to grant a special exception, allowing owners Sal Lupoli and Fred Schaake to nearly quadruple the gaming space in the future complex, which will include a new Casino Ballroom music venue, 204-room boutique hotel, and 99 condominiums.
“We are the smallest casino (charitable gaming facility) in the entire state,” Lupoli told the board. “Our vision was to always rebuild this and be year-round.”
The new Hampton Beach Casino complex includes an expanded gaming facility, a new music venue, hotel, and condos.
Charitable gaming has been a part of the existing Casino complex at 169 Ocean Blvd. since 2014. Aces and Eights — owned by Lupoli Companies — has operated on the first floor of the complex that once housed the Whale’s Tale Restaurant. The 8,000-square-foot gaming room has been open year-round since 2023.
Charitable gaming is New Hampshire’s legalized version of gambling which includes historical horse racing machines (essentially slot machines), along with a slew of table games like roulette, blackjack and poker. There are bet limits and 35% of proceeds must go to nonprofit charities as state law requires.
“It’s regulated by the state, and they regulate the daylights out of it,” said engineer Rick Friberg, representing the Casino owners. “It rivals the zoning ordinance in terms of the number of restrictions put on it.”
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Why does Casino need special exception to expand gaming?
Hampton’s ordinance requires a special exception for charitable gaming. While the Casino received one in 2014, it came with the condition that gambling be restricted to the floor area depicted in the application.
Friberg said the new proposed gaming facility would be much larger (similar in size to the new Casino Ballroom, which will be 46,000 square feet). It will be located on the first and second floors in the rear of the development, according to Friberg, and will not be visible from Ocean Boulevard.
“Anyone who is familiar with Aces and Eights knows that the entrance today is Ocean Boulevard lined up with all the different retail shops,” Friberg said. “Just as easy as you can walk into a restaurant or an arcade, you could potentially open the door to Aces and Eights.”
Although the game room will be accessible via the main lobby of the new complex, Friberg said its primary entrance from the outside will be at the rear of Ashworth Avenue. Security personnel will be stationed at the doors to ensure entry is restricted to people age 18 and older.
A look at the proposed entrance off Ashworth Avenue to the new expanded gaming facility part of the Hampton Beach Casino complex redevelopment.
“We are doing our best to minimize the presence of the use in what we want to be a very family-friendly area along Ocean Boulevard,” Friberg said.
Friberg said the entrance from Ashworth Avenue would feature an entry vestibule with screening elements — such as frosted glass and window graphics — to prevent visibility from the sidewalk or street.
The gaming room will have its own set of doors located within the vestibule.
“We don’t want any visibility at all into the charitable gaming use from the outside,” he said.
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Will expanded gaming negatively impact Hampton Beach?
Zoning Board Chair Erica de Vries was the only member to vote against granting the special exception, citing concerns about the size of the proposed gaming room and the potential negative effects of gambling on the community.
One of the criteria for approving a special exception is ensuring that public health, safety, welfare, and convenience are protected.
“Gambling has an impact on the safety and welfare of people in the community, and the larger a gambling institution is, the larger those impacts are going to be, especially when something becomes more of a destination,” de Vries said.
Rendering of the first floor of the proposed Hampton Beach Casino redevelopment.
Studies have shown that expanding gambling can lead to higher rates of addiction and, in some cases, be linked to increased crime. However, proponents of charitable gaming in New Hampshire emphasize its benefits, particularly the revenue it generates for nonprofits. In 2024 alone, charitable gaming brought in over $39 million for charities, according to New Hampshire Lottery.
Friberg said Aces and Eights partnered with 82 charities last year, contributing $250,000.
Several Zoning Board members noted that charitable gaming has been a part of the Casino property for more than a decade without issue.
Zoning Board member Bill O’Brien said the size of the Casino’s proposed gaming facility is comparable to the existing gaming room at Hampton Beach’s Beach Club Casino (formerly Ocean Gaming), which operates year-round at 81 Ocean Blvd.
Friberg added it’s also half the size of The Brook casino in Seabrook, located at the former greyhound racing track park.
“I can lose just as much money as Aces and Eights as I do at Ocean Gaming, I can guarantee you that,” Zoning Board member Bryan Provencal said. “If this came in and the Ballroom was a casino … and it was one big giant casino, then I would say that would be a little too much for the beach.”
Zoning Board members Greg Grady and Ken Sheffert agreed.
“Economic-wise, they are going to have to expand to compete because there is a limited number of gaming in New Hampshire,” Sheffert said. “I don’t have a problem with the size.”
O’Brien made the motion to approve the expanded gaming room with the condition that Hampton, as a host community, benefits from gaming revenue along with Hampton, Exeter, North Hampton and Seabrook area charities.
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What’s next?
The owners of the Hampton Beach Casino are finalizing plans to present to the town’s Site Plan Review Board and Planning Board.
Plans for the new Casino complex call for the complete demolition of the existing building, which is more than 100 years old.
The new five to six-story development with staggered roof lines ranging from 22 feet to 85 feet would span from F to D Street, taking up the majority of the 4.5-acre property.
The new building will include retail and commercial on the first two floors and dwelling units above. It will include a new and expanded Casino Ballroom, increasing its capacity from 1,800 seated to 3,500, charitable gaming, retail and restaurants, and an arcade. New uses for the property include a 204-room boutique hotel with a spa, 99 condominium units and a parking garage.
The project received zoning variances in February for height, allowing sections of the building to reach 85 feet in a zone with a 70-foot limit, and for density, permitting 90 condos where 78 are allowed.
This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: Hampton Beach Casino revamp advances: Gambling to quadruple in size