The Navajo National Gaming Enterprise could reopen two more casinos if a bill proposed in the Navajo Nation Council passes and President Jonathan Nez signs it.
The council began hearings on the bill June 20. The nation’s casinos have been shuttered since spring of 2020 over concerns of the spiking of Covid-19 cases, which hit the nation hardest.
In March, the Navajo Department of Health authorized the reopening of the Northern Edge Casino in Upper Fruitland and Gallup’s Fire Rock Casino. They are using enhanced safety procedures such as reduced occupancy and limited hours.
The Flowing Water Casino in Hogback and Flagstaff’s Twin Arrows Casino Resort have not reopened. But the main hurdle to the casinos’ profitability has been the prohibition against tourists and visitors playing at casinos, which was adopted as a health and safety measure on May 21, 2020. The proposed bill would lift those restrictions.
On June 15, Brian Parrish, CEO of the gaming enterprise, thanked council members for letting employees return to work and demonstrating that Covid-19 safety protocols are working.
He noted that the ongoing shutdown of Flower Water and Twin Arrows keeps 40 percent of the workforce idle, and the enterprise is losing employees to casinos in surrounding states that have reopened.
Parrish said, “We’re keeping our guys safe. We’re trying to create an environment that protects the patrons as they come in. We’ve got to be able to get Twin Arrows open though, so we stop losing our team members to relocation to Phoenix and get everybody back to work.”
He concluded, “We’ve demonstrated that we’re safe. We’re one of the very last casinos to be reopening anywhere in the U.S.”
