New York’s new Rivers Casino & Resort brought in million in gaming revenue in its first week of business, according to data released by the state Gaming Commission.
A total of $27.3 million was poured into Rivers’ 1,150 slot machines or wagered at its 67 gaming tables from February 6, when the Schenectady resort held a soft-opening, through February 12?and this despite two significant snowstorms.
Most of it, $23 million, was bet on slots, accounting for $2.3 million in revenue. The tables won $565,932. The rake from the casino’s 15 poker tables totaled $111,492.
“Our guests and the community have been very enthusiastic,” Rivers said in a statement. “Our entire team looks forward to continually improving operations and providing a superior entertainment experience.”
The performance, at least in the early going, puts Rivers on a par with the new, larger del Lago Casino and Resort, which opened in the Finger Lakes region in Seneca County on February 1.
The del Lago reported about $3.3 million in revenue from its opening week. That resort features 2,000 slot machines, 12 poker tables and nearly 80 table games.
The first of the four new commercial casinos, Tioga Downs Casino & Racing, opened in December in Nichols in the Southern Tier region with an initial complement of 461 machine games and 35 table games, including poker. The facility won $827,539 its first week on wagers of $9.2 million.
The state taxes Rivers’ gaming revenue at a rate of 45 percent on slots and 10 percent on table games. The slot rate is the highest of any of the four new upstate casinos, which includes the Montreign, slated to open in the Catskills early next year.
Eighty percent of the take is redistributed to public schools across New York. Another 10 percent is split evenly between the city of Schenectady and Schenectady County. The remaining 10 percent will be divided up among Albany, Fulton, Montgomery, Rensselaer, Saratoga, Schoharie and Washington counties, based on population.
