Staying shut over COVID-19
The Eldorado Casino in Henderson, Nevada is set to keep its operations closed through June 2021 after obtaining approval from Henderson City Council on August 18. Casino owner Boyd Gaming filed paperwork with the council to make its liquor and gaming licenses non-operational until next summer.
liquor and gaming licenses non-operational until next summer
Boyd Gaming’s vice president of regulatory compliance, Michelle Rasmusson, sent a letter dated July 15 to Henderson City manager Richard Derrick, informing him of its plan. The letter read: “At this time, we are respectfully informing the City of Henderson that the Eldorado Casino will remain closed until further due to the COVID-19 pandemic.” When a decision is made regarding a comeback date, Eldorado will submit a reopening plan to local officials.
Many resorts in Nevada have been struggling to deal with effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. Boyd Gaming also has its Main Street Station and Eastside Cannery properties shuttered. CEO Keith Smith previously said of the current challenging operational situation in Las Vegas: “Once the demand starts to pick up […] that’s when you’d see us reopen those. We don’t have any dates right now.”
Other operators feeling the squeeze
Boyd Gaming is not the only casino owner that is feeling the squeeze and keeping facilities closed for the foreseeable future. Major casino companies Caesars Entertainment and MGM Resorts still have some of their properties in the state temporarily shut. Among these are Caesars’ Planet Hollywood Resort, The Linq, Rio, and The Cromwell. The doors of The Park MGM and The Mirage also remain closed.
visitor numbers to the gambling region are down
In view of the restrictions imposed by the pandemic, all casinos in Nevada were ordered to cease business activity between March 18 and June 4. When they later got permission to reopen, all facilities had to follow extensive health and safety measures, including operating gaming floors at significantly reduced capacity.
Visitor numbers to the gambling region are down, making it financially non-viable for a lot of Nevada casinos to reopen at the moment.
Potential permanent casino closures
In light of continued uncertainty surrounding COVID-19, there is no guarantee that all the temporarily closed properties will eventually resume business activity.
don’t know if, or when, we’re going to reopen”
Frank Fertitta III, chairman and CEO of Red Rock Resorts, expressed doubt about four currently closed Station Casinos resorts in Vegas, saying: “We don’t know if, or when, we’re going to reopen any of the closed properties.” Station Casinos properties in the area, such as the Fiesta Rancho, Palms, Texas Station, and Fiesta Henderson, all have their liquor and gaming licenses in non-operational status until 2021.