It appears the city of St. Louis will have just one developer to choose from in its bid to replace the President Casino.

Casino Celebration LLC, a group led by local developers Jim and Bill Koman, was the only team to show up Monday at a meeting with city officials who are deciding which casino project to endorse to the Missouri Gaming Commission. It's a sign that only one serious proposal will be on the table within the city.

A second group, California-based Plain Joe Development, submitted a proposal seeking the city's blessing in June. But it sent no one to the meeting, and its principal didn't return a call seeking comment Monday.

Two other groups have dipped a toe in the license process but not submitted formal proposals to the city.

That appears to leave Casino Celebration, which Monday pitched a $115 million, 120,000 square foot complex along Riverview Drive at the foot of the Old Chain of Rocks Bridge.

A $26 million second phase with a hotel could be built later.

They said it could create 625 permanent jobs and generate $29.7 million in state tax revenue and $9.4 million for the city.

It's relatively small, by local casino standards, and that's by design. Some gambling companies have warned that the St. Louis casino market is built out and that a property around Chain of Rocks would mostly just steal business from other casinos.

"We're not trying to flood the market," said Dan Farris, Casino Celebration's project director.

He predicted that most of the new casino's business would come from tourists driving by on Interstate 270, from new gamblers in north St. Louis County, and from Illinois — no concern of the Missouri Gaming Commission.

Greg Smith, an attorney for the project, noted that the Koman family has owned and run the Casino Queen in East St. Louis since 1993.

"They have a rich understanding of the gaming market," he said.

Applications to the Gaming Commission are due Sept. 1, and the city hopes to choose a project to endorse by then.

Although such an endorsement is not a requirement, it will probably help a project win favor with the Gaming Commission.

The commission is likely to choose among proposals in St. Louis, Cape Girardeau, Sugar Creek and potentially St. Louis County, where a group of developers is pushing ahead with a $350 million project in Spanish Lake despite the opposition of County Executive Charlie Dooley.