West St. Paul Bingo Palace Reopens

Thanks to Clover Montessori School and FoodSmith for their support.

After a five-month absence, the West St. Paul Bingo Palace is back. They will reopen in the same location at 1361 S. Robert Street next to Menards on April 22.

Who: The local chapter of AMVETS—Minnesota Post 1 headquartered at the VFW in Mendota—is taking over the charitable gambling operation at the Bingo Palace. This makes 13 charitable gambling locations for AMVETS, mostly in Dakota and Ramsey counties.

Why: “The main reason for doing this is just to give back to the community,” said Sandy Grob, the assistant gambling manager. “We want to make the community better, so whatever community we’re in we donate the money directly into that community.”

• Over the past year, AMVETS has donated to multiple local causes, including $50,000 to Neighbors Inc., $50,000 to 360 Communities, $10,000 to Shop With a Cop, $10,000 to the police Citizen Academy, and many more, as well as supporting veterans, local VAs, and more.

When: They plan for a soft opening on April 22 to work out any kinks with a grand opening on May 1. They hope to offer three sessions of bingo every day at 11 a.m., 2 p.m., and 7 p.m., though they might adjust weekend hours and drop the morning session.

What happened: Previously, the Tapemark Minnesota PGA Pro-Am ran the Bingo Palace but shut down operations in November due to declining business. AMVETS were interested in reopening operations, but it took a while to negotiate the lease with Menards.

Returning staff: “One of the reasons we wanted to take it over is we realized there were so many people out of work,” Grob said. “We actually are bringing most of them back to work.”

More info: Visit the Bingo Palace website for additional information.

April 30, 2024 Update: Grand Opening

The West St. Paul Bingo Palace is hosting a grand opening on May 1 at 7 p.m.

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