emerald queen riverboat sold

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Seen on Elliott Bay; Emerald Queen paddle wheeler sold

The Emerald Queen paddle wheel boat that served as a casino in Fife from 1997 to 2004 has been sold. It was seen on Elliott Bay on Feb. 23.

Photo by Greg Haapla

Thu, 02/23/2023

information from the Puyallup Tribe

The Puyallup Tribe’s Emerald Queen Riverboat has a new owner and will be repurposed.

Anchored on the Blair Waterway, the riverboat served the Tribe as a floating casino from 1997 to 2004. Today the Tribe operates two Emerald Queen Casinos, one in Fife and one in Tacoma that opened in 2020.

In recent years it was a familiar sight to customers at the Tribe’s annual Firecracker Alley fireworks market.

“The riverboat served our Tribe well and laid the foundation for us to open and operate the two premier casinos in the Northwest,” the Puyallup Tribal Council said.

Spectral Crane and Marine will be taking over ownership of the boat, which began its journey to Seattle by tugboat on Thursday. Moving the riverboat will open up more of the Tribe’s port property for economic development.

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Puyallup Tribe Sells Iconic Emerald Queen Riverboat Casino for an Undisclosed Amount

According to an official statement released by the Puyallup Tribal Council, the Mississippi-style riverboat, which is almost 300 feet long and operated as a floating casino in the period from 1997 to 2004, was sold to Spectral Crate and Marine, an equipment rental company of marine assets and barges based in Seattle. For the time being, no further details of the deal have been released, apart from the information that the riverboat casino is set to be repurposed after the completion of the takeover deal.

The Puyallup Tribal Council revealed that moving the riverboat from its current location will open up more of the tribe’s port property and make it available for further economic development. Before the announcement of the deal, the riverboat casino was docked in close proximity to 2102 Alexander Avenue.

As previously revealed by local media hubs, the riverboat casino ceased operation in 2004, after the Port of Tacoma wanted to close Alexander Avenue to make certain expansions. At the time, the riverboat casino was shuttered, and a hotel in Fife was converted into a casino and hotel by the Puyallup Tribe. A few years later, in the late 2010s, the Native American tribe started building a $400-million casino near Interstate 5.

Spectral Crade and Marine’s Owner Confirms Purchasing the Riverboat Casino

In the last few years, the riverboat was a common sight at the annual July 4th fireworks show held by the Tribe.

Before the takeover deal was announced, the riverboat was officially listed in Northwest Yachting Magazine. According to a publication from 2022, the four-deck boat was built by Quality Shipyard and Kehl River Boats in 1995, at the cost of $15 million. According to a story published by the News Tribune in 1997, the Puyallup Tribe acquired the boat for the price of $13 million, with the total development project being estimated at $21 million. The riverboat had a capacity of 2,000 people.

The Emerald Queen has been praised for its design, which was described as a homage to riverboating in the 19th century, as it was directed by a giant wooden stern wheel rather than by a propeller. Apart from that, it was praised for its interior, which featured a grand staircase connecting all three decks in a chandelier-lit atrium.

Approved Online Casinos

After being moored for a quarter-century on Tacoma’s Blair Waterway, the Puyallup Tribe of Indians’ iconic former riverboat casino, the Emerald Queen, was tugged to Seattle on Thursday following a recent sale.

Details of the deal are under wraps, but the nearly 300-foot Mississippi style riverboat was sold to Spectral Crane and Marine, a Seattle-based equipment rental company of barges and marine assets, according to a statement from the Puyallup Tribal Council. The boat operated as a floating casino from 1997 to 2004. Now, it will be repurposed.

Owner of Spectral Crane and Marine, Boyer Halverson, said in a phone call Thursday that plans for the boat are not finalized, but it might be converted into a barge. Asked about the price of the sale, Halverson was mum.

“Oh, I can’t disclose that,” Halverson said. “I can tell you I probably paid too much.”

The Puyallup Tribal Council said in its statement that moving the riverboat will open up more of the Tribe’s port property for economic development. Before Thursday, it was docked near 2102 Alexander Ave. According to previous reporting from The News Tribune , the boat’s casino was closed in 2004 after the Port of Tacoma wanted to shut down Alexander Avenue for expansion. The Puyallup Tribe shuttered the riverboat and converted a hotel in Fife into a casino and hotel. Then in the late 2010s, the Tribe began building its $400 million casino that glows just off of Interstate 5.

“The riverboat served our Tribe well and laid the foundation for us to open and operate the two premier casinos in the Northwest,” the Puyallup Tribal Council said in a statement.

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• Seen on Elliott Bay; Emerald Queen paddle wheeler sold (Westside Seattle)