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New York Casinos To Stay Closed Without Any Timetable For Reopening

Empire State Will Be The Last To Reopen Commercial Casinos

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New York’s four commercial casinos have endured the longest shutdown of any market in the country. Based on recent comments made by Gov. Andrew Cuomo, they won’t be open for business any time soon, according to a report from the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle.

During a press conference, Cuomo told reporters that del Lago Resort & Casino in Seneca County, Resorts World Catskills, Rivers Casino in Schenectady and Tioga Downs Casino Resort will remain closed without any timetable of reopening.

“It’s an issue of density, the likelihood of compliance and the essential nature of the business,” said Cuomo.

The properties have been closed since March 16 and with Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s executive order that will allow Detroit casinos to open this week, New York will become the last market to reopen commercial casinos. Whenever that is.

New York City was one of the major epicenters of the initial COVID-19 outbreak in the United States, which is one of the driving factors behind Cuomo’s stricter reopening policies. None of the state’s four commercial casinos, however, are within even a few hours of Manhattan.

Resorts World Catskills is the closest casino to the city, which is still more than a two-hour drive.

The rest of the state’s tribal casinos have been reopening since mid-June with several safety protocols in place. One of the more unique measures came from Turning Stone casino, which only allowed guests to enter who resided within 120 miles of the casino. The move allowed the Syracuse-area casino to deny downstate guests from entering, who may have been more likely to have been exposed to the virus.

The shutdown has affected employment numbers in the Empire State. Last month, the four properties announced that 4,100 of its furloughed workers had been laid off.