Wynn Resorts has secured key regulatory approvals for the upcoming opening of the $2.6 billion Encore Boston Harbor in Everett, Massachusetts. The luxury hotel and casino resort is gearing up preparations to welcome its first visitors on June 23.
The Massachusetts Gaming Commission said on Wednesday that it has authorized Wynn Resorts to conduct trial days next week for the gambling positions installed at the property’s casino floor. Commission staff inspected earlier this week a total of 3,158 slot machines, 143 table games, and 88 poker tables that are to operate at the gaming venue.
Two divisions of the Massachusetts’ gaming regulator are tasked with supervising these steps. The Commission’s Investigations and Enforcement Bureau and the Information Technology Services Division need to “ensure the integrity of the games, compliance with regulations and overall adherence” to the state’s standards.
Following the Gaming Commission’s inspection at Encore Boston Harbor’s gaming floor, the regulator said in a statement that Wynn Resorts has met or exceeded most of the requirements that came with its license to operate a casino.
Company officials revealed that they still need to meet a requirement that women represent half of its casino workforce. At present, they represent 44% of the gaming floor’s staff.
Gaming Standards
The inspections at Encore Boston Harbor and next week’s trial gaming days are necessary steps before the opening of the property. State regulators need to ensure that all requirements that are part of Wynn Resorts’ gaming license are fulfilled in order for the company to be able to move on to the launch of its newest resort.
Under state regulations, all slot machines at a casino must have a minimum theoretical payout of 80% during a game’s cycle. As for table games, they must be inspected prior the casino’s launch and then reinspected routinely.
As for Wynn Resorts, as the license holder, it needs to monitor how its machines are running as well as their usage and to perform occasional audits to ensure compliance.
Encore Boston Harbor will be Massachusetts’ second full-scale commercial casino when it opens doors in ten days, with MGM Resorts International’s MGM Springfield, which opened doors last August, being the first.
Wynn Resorts’ $2.6 billion masterplan has been through a lot over the past five years, but it now looks that nothing can prevent it from finally opening doors. Most recently, Encore Boston Harbor’s parent company was slapped with a $35 million fine by the Massachusetts Gaming Commission over failure to address properly multiple sexual misconduct allegations leveled against Wynn Resorts’ founder and former boss Steve Wynn.
When it opens doors, Encore Boston Harbor will feature a 27-story hotel tower with 671 rooms and 104 luxury suites, food and beverage outlets, a casino, MICE facilities, and a public harborwalk among many other amenities.
Wynn Resorts expects its new property to annually attract 8 million people. The company said that it plans to market the new resort to its existing customer base of more than 10 million people between its properties in Las Vegas and Macau. Collaborations with international influencers and travel professionals, as well as partnerships with local hospitality businesses would be part of Wynn Resorts’ marketing strategy for Encore Boston Harbor, the company has also revealed.
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