NEWS & NOTES

Rivers Casino Pittsburgh unveiled its massive new event space last week in a banquet event featuring strolling models dressed in food-themed costumes. The $3.5 million space located on the second floor includes 5,000 square feet in the foyer and 20,000 square feet in the main area. A spacious Green Room contains a red carpet, lighted mirrors and plush couches and chairs for VIPs. The space can hold 800 guests for sit-down dinners and 2,000 for stand-up receptions, trade shows, conferences and concerts. • Gamblit Gaming, one of the pioneers in offering casinos skill-based electronic games, has laid off an unspecified number of employees, according to a report in GamesBeat. Eric Meyerhofer, CEO of Gamblit, responded to the report with a statement, saying, “We’re implementing changes at Gamblit Gaming to support continued innovation and growth by streamlining operations to improve profitability. We greatly appreciate our team’s contributions to Gamblit, and are offering support and severance packages to assist impacted employees.” • Digital keys through the MGM Resorts International mobile app are now available for M Life Card members staying at eight of the company’s Las Vegas resorts. The app also allows room reservations and check-in and check-out and can be used to book reservations at restaurants and shows. • Virgin Hotels Las Vegas will participate in Hilton Hotel’s Curio Collection customer service program, the Hilton Honors loyalty program and Hilton’s “Lucy” customer service app when it opens next year on the site of the Hard Rock Hotel Casino. The property is undergoing some $200 million in renovations as part of the conversion. • BMM Testlabs has named Vojislav Kraljić business development manager of its European operations. Kraljić has worked at Fazi & Triple Crown Company and has seven years’ experience in international gaming, BMM said. • The Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada has approved a plan to erect pedestrian bridges linking the four corners of Sahara Avenue and Las Vegas Boulevard in Las Vegas. Construction is scheduled to start in July 2022 and be completed by January 2024 at a cost of $27.5 million   · The American Indian Graduate Center (AIGC) and the California Nations Indian Gaming Association are teaming up to present an annual scholarship, the $2,000 Seven Generations Scholarship Fund. The scholarship will be awarded to undergraduate or graduate students pursuing degrees in gaming, hospitality management, public policy or public administration. The inaugural recipient will be Gwen Salt, a member of the Navajo Nation, who is pursuing a master’s in public administration at the University of Southern California. · The Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians celebrated 25 years in Class III gaming last month. In 1994 the tribe opened its Harrah’s Cherokee Casino Resort in North Carolina. More recently it opened its second casino, the Harrah’s Cherokee Valley River Casino and Hotel. · The Clearwater Casino Resort near Suquamish, Washington plans to close its Longhouse Buffet and shift to a food court. This follows industry trends away from buffets and toward “destination” dining with creative chefs said Port Madison Enterprises CEO Samuel Askew. “Once people get over the initial disappointment of something closing, whether it’s your favorite restaurant that you would normally go to or the buffet, and they come in and experience the new venue, I think they’re going to be quite pleased with the change,” he said. He added that buffets are wasteful. “Obviously there’s a financial component to this,” he said. Melco Resorts & Entertainment has announced a salary hike for eligible non-management employees in Macau. It will increase salaries from 2.5 percent to 7.5 percent, with raises taking effect April 1. ● The 2025 Japan International Expo Association, which will run the Osaka-Kansai World Expo, launched January 30 with its first meeting. The theme of the expo will be “Designing Future Society for Our Lives.” ● Rush Street Japan recently sponsored a charity bingo game at the 53rd Tomakomai Skate Festival in Japan. U.S.-based Rush Street is one of many suitors for one of Japan’s first three integrated resort licenses. ● The Macau Government Tourism Office plans to monitor visitor flows at tourist districts and elsewhere during the Spring Festival Golden Week to ensure accurate reference data. ● Macau has been flooded by tour groups, most from Hong Kong, since the opening of the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge. In the first month after the opening, a record 103,000 people crossed the bridge into the city including more than 200 tour groups. ● Macau’s 116 hotels and guesthouses reported a record 14.1 million guests in 2018, up 7.2 percent year-on-year, the Statistics and Census Bureau has announced. The total number of guests included 9.7 million Mainland Chinese, 1.5 million Hong Kong residents and 477,000 Taiwanese.