NEWS & NOTES

The six casinos of Maryland set another revenue record in March, generating $141.2 million, an increase of more than 44 percent over the same month last year. The previous record monthly revenue was $133.5 million, earned December, the MGM National Harbor opened on the Potomac River across from the nation’s capital. For March, MGM reclaimed the role of the top revenue-generator for the month with more than $50 million generated, surpassing Maryland Live! in the Baltimore suburb of Hanover.  •  Nevada sports books will now be accepting bets on the outcome of the NFL draft, which will take place at the end of April. A series of proposition bets on the draft were approved by Nevada regulators, and at least one sports book began taking bets over last week. Others have decided to skip the option or take time to ponder it.  •  Treasure Island Resort & Casino, owned by the Prairie Island Indian Community in Welch, Minnesota has unveiled a Greentube-powered social casino, offering free-to-play games under the playTIcasino brand. The social casino aims to attract millennials with a look and feel of the actual brick and mortar casino, accessible through desktops and mobile platforms. Although the games are not offering real money games as yet, they are seen as a way to build brand loyalty.  •  The Margaritaville inside Jack Cincinnati Casino will close on April 23. The restaurant, bar and music venue was part of the casino when it opened as the Horseshoe in 2013. The employees were given the opportunity to transfer either to another of Margaritaville’s 25 locations and continue working at the casino.  •  Atlantic City’s Casino Reinvestment Development Authority is sponsoring the Atlantic City Airshow August 23. The show will feature precision flying from such groups as the USAF Thunderbirds and the U.S. Army Golden Knights Parachute Team.  •  The Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria, owners of the Graton Resort & Casino in Northern California are meeting its memo of understanding to pay for fire equipment and other vehicles for the city of Rohnert Park. For FY 2016-2017 the tribe is expected to pay the city $3.075 million, which will be used for a new ladder track and several police cars. The mayor, Jake Mackenzie, made a point of saying that the tribe is honoring its agreement. “We have found them to be good partners and we have an ongoing relationship with them. They honored their commitments to us,” he said.  •  North Dakota’s House narrowly defeated a bill to allow “historic horse racing,” as a game of skill at the state’s ten off-track betting installations, and instead chose to classify the games as illegal slot machines. The bill’s sponsor Andy Marangos said the games would help horseracing. “It was hurting for a while, it’s kind of stabilized, and now we have to help it grow,” he said, adding “I believe this bill and what it has to offer will help the horse racing industry grow.” The vote was 46 no and 45 yes.  •  The Cowlitz Indian Tribe of Washington has announced two additional amenities for its $510 million Ilani Casino Resort due to open at the end of April. The amenities are the 360 Bar, a circular bar that will be in the middle of 100,000 square foot gaming floor; and Muze, an entertainment lounge, also near the gaming floor. It is described as “an intimate setting where some of the hottest acts will take the stage.”  •  Cliff Castle Casino Hotel, owned by the Yavapai-Apache Nation in Cape Verde, Arizona, is looking at a July opening for its $29 million 122 room hotel. It will have an indoor pool, gift shop and event center with seating for up to 300. The hotel exterior is nearly done and the tribe is aiming for an “AAA, four-diamond designation.” The original hotel will be converted into “more of a lodge experience,” according to spokesman Red Wootan.  •  Seven dealers who once worked at Casino Lan Kwai Fong in Macau told the city’s Labor Affairs Bureau they were forced to resign or were “unreasonably” fired so operator SJM could replace them with cheaper workers. SJM Chairman Ambrose So Shu Fai has denied the allegation.  ?  South Korean casino firm Majestar Co. Ltd. will suspend operations at its Jeju Shilla Hotel & Casino on Jeju Island for a month due to a violations perpetrated by its predecessor, Beluga Co. Ltd. The latter company apparently failed to report all casino operations in 2011. The suspension will cost the current operator KRW 24.4 billion (US $21.5 million).  ?  A new study on Hong Kong gamblers shows their gaming venue of choice is a casino ship, with Macau’s integrated resorts as their second choice. A survey of more than 1,250 respondents said the average amount they gambled per month on casino ships—HKD45,259.6 (US$5,824) far exceeds that wagered at Macau casinos—HKD7,938.8 (US$1,021). ?  Paulo Martins Chain, director of Macau’s Gaming Inspection and Coordination Bureau, says the bureau has not received an application for gaming tables from the 13, a new ultra-luxury hotel set to open in July in Coloane. In the past the company has been said to want a gaming facilities on the premises.  ?  The budget for the development of Grand Lisboa Palace is estimated at HK$36 billion (US$4.6 billion), according to SJM Chairman Ambrose So Shu Fai. Grand Lisboa Palace will likely open in the first half of 2018 with 400 gaming tables.  ?  Macau’s Public Security Police announced in a recent statement that Taiwan residents can visit Macau using their mainland travel permits, omitting the need for local entry permits. Taiwan residents can stay in Macau for 30 days when they use their Taiwan Compatriot Permits to enter the city. ?  Gambling addiction in Hong Kong is on the decline. That’s according to a study commissioned by the Ping Wo Fund, which indicates that 61.5 percent of Hong Kongers gambled in 2016, versus 62.3 percent in 2012 and 77.8 percent in 2001.  ?   Men are more likely to violate Macau’s tobacco control law, according to the city’s Health Bureau. In the first quarter of 2017, male residents comprised 93.8 percent of those cited for smoking in public places, including non-smoking areas of casinos.  •  The former Siena Hotel Casino in Reno has reopened as a non-gaming Renaissance-branded hotel with 214 rooms and suites, a patio and outdoor pool, a craft beer brewery, a 22,000-square-foot entertainment and dining attraction and 38,200 square feet of meetings and events space.