It’s a move that would have been illegal until just a few years ago, when Louisiana legislators eased up on the law mandating that all but one casino in the state be on “riverboats,” even if in only in the broadest sense of that term.

Where did those requirements come from in the first place, and why is Louisiana now allowing more gambling on terra firma? Times-Picayune reporter Tyler Bridges has spent years chronicling how the laws were put in place, the shady dealings and corruption that accompanied the gambling industry and how they were finally eased 30 years later.

Why were casinos allowed to operate only over water?

When they authorized 15 casinos in 1991, lawmakers sought to conjure historic images of riverboats steaming up and down the Mississippi River, with the idea of softening opposition to gambling and creating a new tourist attraction. The casinos — some on rivers, some on lakes — were required to have a maritime crew on board at all times, and to have a paddlewheel invoking the olden days.

One exception was made a year later: a single casino on land in New Orleans, now Harrah’s.

Did the riverboats actually sail?

Regular sailing was the idea, at least initially. But the casinos quickly found that customers headed to the exits when they knew the boats were about to leave the dock, lest they be caught on board while the boats made a three-hour circuit.

So excuses for staying in their berths became common. Among them: too much wind, choppy water, too dark and, for the Treasure Chest, low-hanging powerlines -- even though raising the lines didn’t entice the boat away from its dock.

When were the rules eased?

The first cracks to the original rules appeared about a decade after the riverboat casino law was passed, when the Legislature conceded that the boats would no longer have to set sail. They would, however, still be allowed to operate only over water, and to have a pilot and paddlewheel.

That opened up a second wave of floating casinos, places such as Golden Nugget and L’Auberge in Lake Charles, where the gambling floors were erected on waterborne barges attached to larger hotels and entertainment complexes. When were they allowed to move to land?

Faced with competition from other states that had legalized gambling, and complaints from casino operators, legislators in 2018 let casinos build on land. Each would have to apply for permission from the Gaming Control Board, but once they got it, they would be able to move their floating casino operations to within a quarter mile of their boat dock and potentially build larger gambling floors.

Which casinos have gotten approval?

The Treasure Chest is just the latest casino to go ashore. The Belle of Baton Rouge began its expansion into a land casino in September. It’s following in the footsteps of the Hollywood Casino in Baton Rouge, which started its expansion more than a year ago.

In Lake Charles, the Horseshoe Casino, formerly the Isle of Capri, is also moving onto land.

By Jeff Adelson