Delaware North to Move Gate City Casino Hotel at the Sheraton in Nashua

One of New Hampshire’s largest and most prominent hotels, the Sheraton in Nashua, a landmark in the city for its castle-like appearance, is set to be transformed into the Gate City Casino Hotel under a new plan by its owner, Delaware North.

The Sheraton to Be Transformed Into a Casino

New York–based gaming and hospitality company Delaware North has been running Gate City Casino, a former billiards hall in Nashua, since late 2022. The company now plans to move the casino from its current industrial park site to the Sheraton Nashua. The 337-room hotel is known for its castle-like design inspired by medieval Europe.

Delaware North plans to construct a new addition in front of the existing hotel, which would house the gaming floor, dining venues, and a parking garage. The complete development proposal includes up to 1,000 gaming options, such as slot machines, table games, and poker tables. The non-gaming offerings are expected to feature a full-service restaurant, a steakhouse, a combined sports bar and restaurant, and an Asian noodle bar.

The expanded Sheraton property would feature a 65,000-square-foot gaming floor in its first phase, with a planned opening before the end of 2027. A second phase, targeted for 2030, would increase the gaming space to 93,000 square feet, effectively almost doubling the size of the casino compared to the current facility. Speaking of the latter, it is expected to close once the new venue opens.

The Building Will Retain Its Memorable Design

John Weaver, an attorney with the firm McLane Middleton representing Delaware North, said the Sheraton will be renamed the Gate City Casino Hotel but still preserve its distinctive appearance. Weaver, who grew up nearby in Merrimack, said he had spent his entire life seeing the building from Route 3. As a child, he often wondered why there was a castle in New Hampshire – a question that felt especially important to him at age seven, implying the importance of the iconic design of the building. 

Back in 2016, Delaware North partnered with Suffolk Off-Track Betting Corporation to redevelop a former 227-room hotel on Long Island into a video lottery casino, meaning the company already has substantial experience in turning hotels into casinos. In New Hampshire, Delaware North is not altering any existing parts of the Sheraton Nashua, but instead expanding the property to incorporate gaming. The hotel’s Tudor-style exterior, including its moat-like gatehouse porte-cochère, will remain unchanged.

In other news from Delaware, one player recently became a millionaire after grabbing a whopping $231 million from the Powerball jackpot after successfully matching all six numbers.