The New York State commercial casino industry was officially established in early December 2016, when Tioga Downs Casino in Nichols was launched. Two more casinos swung doors open in the following months, those being Rivers Casino & Resort in Schenectady and del Lago Resort and Casino in Waterloo.
Under the state’s Constitution gambling expansion is prohibited and any such expansion could only occur if amendments are adopted. Such an amendment was introduced in 2013 and was signed by Gov. Andrew Cuomo. It provided for the construction of up to four Las Vegas-style casinos in Upstate New York.
The last of four casino licenses was granted to Tioga Downs Racetrack owner Jeff Gural in 2015. The former racing venue was transformed into one that featured casino options in addition to the racing ones and opened doors in late 2016.
Upon the legalization of commercial casino gambling in New York, it was estimated that the industry could generate $325 million in annual gross gaming revenue. The state’s three operational casinos have generated the total amount of $133.6 million in the period between early December 2016 and May 31, 2017. And figures reported by the New York State Gaming Commission have shown that the local market has been developing at a stable pace over the past several months.
If that trend is kept all the way through the end of the year, the above-mentioned prognosis will probably not be met in 2017. However, what matters more here is the fact that the first months of New York’s casino industry have shown that there is a demand for this type of offering in the state and that now and for now it is able to keep casino customers within its borders despite growing competition from neighboring states.
And here is how the three gambling venues have performed over the past several months.
Tioga Downs Casino
Tioga Downs is the longest-running casino in New York’s nascent commercial casino market. The property generated revenue of $34.8 million in the period between early December 2016 and May 2017.
Here it is important to note that the Nichols-based property is the smallest one of all three discussed casinos. Over the reported period, Tioga Downs featured an average of 841 slot machines, 25 table games, and 12 poker tables.
Slot machines were the highest grossing type of gambling service at the facility, with revenue of $29.5 million. Revenue from table games totaled $10.3 million during the period in review. As for poker, revenue from the game amounted to $656,989.
March 2017 was the casino’s best month in terms of revenue generated with the total amount of $6.2 million being reported by the state Gaming Commission.
del Lago Resort and Casino
Del Lago became the state’s second commercial casino. The property was launched on February 1. It generated gross gaming revenue of $52 million in the period between February 1 and May 31, thus becoming New York’s most profitable commercial gambling venue.
It is also important to mention that del Lago is, in fact, the largest of all three in terms of the number of table games and slot machines available at its premises. An average of 1,989 slot machines could be found on the resort’s casino floor during the reported period as well as 79 table games and 12 poker tables.
Revenue from slots totaled $37.3 million during the reported months. Table games generated the amount of $13.7 million. Poker revenue amounted to $954,804.
February was the casino’s best month in terms of gaming revenue generated, which can be explained with the great initial interest in the newly opened property. The amount of $13.5 million was reported for that month.
Del Lago owners have recently announced that the hotel portion of the complex would be opened on July 1, or two weeks ahead of schedule. The new addition to the resort may attract further interest in the venue and it will not be a surprise if July casino figures are boosted.
Rivers Casino & Resort
Rivers Casino was opened for business a week after its del Lago counterpart. The property generated revenue of $46.8 million in the period between February 8 and May 31.
The casino featured an average of 1,150 slot machines, 67 table games, and 15 poker tables during the reported period.
Slot machines generated revenue of $19.6 million during the reviewed months, thus becoming the most popular gambling option at the property. Revenue from table games amounted to $14.8 million. Poker contributed $2.2 million to the revenue bulk.
March was Rivers Casino’s best month. The gambling venue generated a total of $13.6 million back then.
Conclusion
New York’s casino industry was off to a particularly good start. Revenue has dropped slightly from the casinos’ first months, but this should not be interpreted as a bad sign for the market, or at least not for now. Initial interest in one new casino or another usually wears off at some point. The important thing here is that the state’s casino industry has kept a stable pace of development and hopefully this trend will be retained in future.
