Hampton Beach Casino Wins Approval for Hotel, Gaming, and Music Venue

Hampton Beach is set for a transformation into a year‑round destination, thanks to a recent approval by the Hampton Planning Board. 

According to a New Hampshire Public Radio (NHPR) report, the Hampton board gave final approval Wednesday, Nov. 5, for the redevelopment of the Hampton Beach Casino.

The Hampton Planning Board's OK greenlights development of luxury condos, a hotel, a casino gaming facility, and a new ballroom entertainment venue.

According to NHPR, the Hampton Planning Board's proposal calls for the following: 

Rick Friberg, president and CEO of TEC — the engineering firm behind the project — said the next step would be to create and hire a contractor. "If everything went smoothly with the project," he said, construction could begin after summer 2026, with the demolition of the existing building, according to SeacoastOnline. Once construction starts, the project could take three years to complete, noted a News 9 report. 

According to a CBS News Boston WBZ-TV report, the current casino site on Ocean Boulevard is more than 100 years old. Developers said it "has reached the end of its useful life." They also note that the building is not fully accessible to people with disabilities and doesn't have modern fire and flood prevention measures.

Sal Lupoli, who founded the regional pizza chain Sal's, owns the casino. "What we're building over there is going to be very respectful to what was there before," Lupoli told WBZ-TV. "We're going to take parts of what's inside the old casino [and] bring them into the new venue."

Community reaction to the project is mixed. Some residents praise the facelift, while others have voiced concerns about changes to the iconic beachfront building.