COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa (AP) — A Las Vegas-owned casino operator plans to buy the company that owns the Ameristar casino in Council Bluffs. The Des Moines Register reports) that Pinnacle Entertainment says it plans to buy Ameristar Casinos for $2.8 billion.The Council Bluffs riverboat casino operates on the Missouri River and has 869 employees.

No major changes are expected in the operation and it will still be branded an Ameristar casino. Pinnacle owns seven casinos in Louisiana, Missouri, and Indiana and a racetrack in Ohio. Ameristar also owns seven other casinos in addition to the Council Bluffs operation. The Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission, which regulates gambling in Iowa is expected to consider the deal next summer.