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SIOUX CITY | After a one-year dip, Iowa’s statewide gaming revenue increased 2 percent in the recently concluded fiscal year, thanks largely to state-licensed wagering in Sioux City moving from water to land, state reports show.

Admissions to the 18 state-licensed casinos also increased by nearly 730,000 — or 3.5 percent — from the previous year.

Much of the increase in revenue and attendance can be attributed to the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Sioux City, which opened in August 2014, IRGC administrator Brian Ohorilko said. Hard Rock’s 2 million visitors in the fiscal year that ended June 30 were second only to the 3 million who visited Prairie Meadows Track & Casino in the Des Moines suburb of Altoona.

Ohorilko said the Sioux City market is up roughly $21 million from the previous fiscal year, before the IRGC ordered the former Argosy riverboat to close on July 30.

The move came after the commission in April 18, 2013, awarded the first land-based gaming license in Woodbury County to the Hard Rock group, which beat out three other applicants.

The $129 million casino, at Third and Pearl streets, boasts 839 slot machines and 25 table games, and has generated $70 million in gaming revenues through June. With only a month to go, however, the casino was well short of the $90.5 million in first-year revenues its Las Vegas-based developers originally projected.

Hard Rock General Manager Todd Moyer said the casino remains on the right trajectory to eventually hit that mark.

"It just takes a little bit of time to ramp up," Moyer said Wednesday. "Sioux City was a declining market the last couple of years. We're getting people to come back to Sioux City. ... I think you'll see our numbers continue to increase."

In May, the casino posted $7 million in revenue. That was its second-best month, behind only the $7.165 million collected during its opening month of August 2014. In June, revenues slumped to $5.8 million, which Moyer said was not unexpected. He cited an abundance of competing events such as family graduations.

The Argosy, docked on the Missouri River, hit an all-time high of $61 million in revenue for the fiscal year that ended June 30, 2012. The floating casino's numbers steadily fell in subsequent years, as its future grew uncertain following a contractual fight with its then-nonprofit sponsor, Missouri River Historical Development. In its final fiscal year, the gambling boat brought in $48 million in revenue.

The IRGC this week published its fiscal 2015 report for the 18 state-licensed casinos. Statewide, gaming revenues rebounded after a one-year decline, making up half the loss from the previous year.

“If you look at the individual markets, most are within 5 percent — up or down — of where they were last year, which demonstrates some stabilization of the market,” Ohorilko said in an email.

Grand Falls Casino Resort in rural Lyon County took in $58.2 million for the 12 months ended June 30, down slightly from $59.1 million in the previous fiscal year.

The state took in $1.42 billion in gaming revenue in fiscal 2015, an increase of more than $27 million. That’s after statewide revenues fell by 4 percent, or roughly $55 million, from fiscal 2013 to fiscal 2014, after peaking at $1.46 billion in fiscal 2012.

“It’s encouraging to see a rebound in the numbers from a year previous,” said Wes Ehrecke, president of the Iowa Gaming Association.

Ohorilko also pointed to a 9 percent revenue increase in the Burlington market, which he said may be a result of increased activity from the nearby construction of a new fertilizer plant.

Ehrecke said a mild winter may have helped, and he credited the increased attendance and revenue to upgrades at the Sioux City and Davenport casinos, as well as casinos’ efforts to offer multiple entertainment options beyond gaming.

“We have premier entertainment destinations,” Ehrecke said. “It’s not just a casino gaming floor experience. It’s the dining, concerts, meeting rooms, conventions, weddings, hotels. ... I’m encouraged that customers enjoy coming to the casino not only for gaming but for other entertainment experiences.”