NEWS & NOTES

Allegiant Air is launching non-stop flights from Las Vegas to Ogden, Utah, and Omaha, Nebraska, beginning November 17, with introductory fares starting at less than $50. The year-round routes are projected to bring more than 33,000 additional visitors to Las Vegas annually, officials with the Las Vegas-based budget carrier said.  •  Reno City Council has approved business licenses for Nevada’s first recreational marijuana retailers. The licensees are Mynt Cannabis Dispensary, Sierra Wellness Connection, Blum (BLOOHM) Reno and The Dispensary. Sales are slated under state law to begin July 1.  •  Attorney Jaime K. Black, a senior research specialist and Investigations Division agent for the Nevada Gaming Control Board, has been named to head the board’s Administrative Division, overseeing human resources, training, facilities, contracts, purchasing, accounting, payroll, budgeting and records retention.  •  English Premier League football club Swansea City has selected Asia-focused online betting and casino operator Letou as its shirt sponsor for the 2017-18 season. Swansea COO Chris Pearlman said the Welsh club “has ambitions to grow our brand in Asia, where Letou has a strong presence and a lot of experience”. He called it “a major partnership that will benefit both parties.”  •  The Macau government has suspended construction of SJM Holdings’ new Grand Lisboa Palace on the Cotai Strip following a fatal accident on June 18. A 47-year-old Chinese worker died after falling more than 30 feet at the construction site, according to the city’s Labor Affairs Bureau. The HKD30 billion (US$3.8 billion) project is scheduled to open in the second half of 2018.  ?  The Macau Government Tourism Office recently hosted a themed tour of the city, “Experience Macao Your Own Style: Parents and Kids Having Fun in Town.” The tour, which highlighted mainstream attractions aimed at children and families, attracted more than 200 delegates from various tourism institutions and key media from Mainland China.  ?  The Macau government is surveying residents for their opinions on the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau Greater Bay Area. The development of the GBA, consisting of Hong Kong, Macau and nine Guangdong cities, would help boost Macau’s economic diversification, quality of life and employment.  ?   The inaugural class of Sands China’s Professionalism Training for Gaming Practitioners program has graduated.  The training program organized by the Macau Federation of Trade Unions, the Labor Affairs Bureau and Sands China Ltd., launched in July 2016. It’s the first course of its kind in Macau for gaming employees and teaches occupational professionalism, gaming history and principles of responsible gaming.  ?  Caesars Entertainment’s main operating company, Caesars Entertainment Operating Company (CEOC), received regulatory approvals from several jurisdictions of its restructuring plan, approved by a federal bankruptcy judge, that will allow the operator to shed some $10 billion of its debt. In addition to Pennsylvania and Iowa, Caesars Entertainment and CEOC have received approvals from gaming authorities in Maryland, Mississippi and Illinois, and some of the approvals required in New Jersey. In addition to obtaining the remaining necessary regulatory approvals, implementation of CEOC’s restructuring plan is also subject to the completion of the merger of Caesars Acquisition Company with and into Caesars Entertainment, certain financing activities, and other customary closing conditions.   •  Nasdaq-listed Entertainment Gaming Asia Inc. will soon become a private company. An entity called EGT Nevada Holding Inc. announced last week that it and Hong Kong-listed Melco International Development Ltd., led by Lawrence Ho Yau Lung, had completed a previously announced tender offer for all Entertainment Gaming Asia’s issued and outstanding shares of common stock not already owned by EGT Nevada and its affiliates.  •  Spanish gaming regulator Dirección General de Ordenación del Juego recently met with the Danish gaming authority Spillemyndigheden to discuss their respective online gaming markets. On the agenda were the regulation of commercial communications, data reporting models and anti-money efforts in the sector.  ?  Some restaurants at Melco Resorts’ City of Dreams Macau have been closed due to lack of permit, says the Macao Government Tourism Office. According to local media, at least eight venues in CoD’s “Soho” zone were closed.  ?   Hong Kong-listed Jimei International Entertainment Group Ltd. has canceled a deal with a VIP gaming promoter in Macau, identified as New International Club Ltd., which had been negotiating a deal to operate 30 VIP tables at Wynn Macau. Jimei indicated the deal died because the parties negotiated for more than two years without reaching an agreement.   •  Rocky Gap Casino Resort, operated by Golden Entertainment Inc., near Flintstone, in Western Maryland, has unveiled a remodeled outdoor area in the rear of the resort that includes a 2,400-square foot terrace and lounge. The Lakeside Terrace gives views of Rocky Gap State Park, including Evitts Mountain and Lake Habeeb. It includes more seating, including Adirondack chairs along the lakeshore and additional seating next to fire pits.   •  The Mohegan Sun Pocono in Pennsylvania is getting rid of a perk many casino customers expect: free valet parking.  Members of the casino’s loyalty program will get less expensive rates, $6, and less the higher up they are in the Momentum program. The Pocono is also going to stop putting on the annual July 4 fireworks show, although it will contribute to a community fireworks event; and will stop putting on Oktoberfest.  •  The Association of British Bookmakers in Scotland (ABB Scotland) has teamed with the charity For the Right Reasons to launch the Merkinch Gamble Support Week June 19-23 to assist people with addictions, including gaming, drug and alcohol addictions. Specialists will be on hand to offer advice on responsible gambling and counseling sessions.  •  The University of Washington has announced it will unveil a 10-credit course in tribal gaming and hospitality in cooperation between the Foster School of Business and the Department of American Indian Studies. Twenty-one tribes operate 27 casinos in the state.  •  The Board of Supervisors of Spokane County, Washington has filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Department of the Interior to try to stop the Spokane Tribe from building a $40 million casino in the flight path of Fairchild Air Force Base. The lawsuit claims the casino would negatively impact the base and cause accidents. It seeks to reverse the department’s action that put the land into trust for the tribe. The County joins the Kalispel Tribe, owners of the Northern Quest Casino, which they claim wi
ll be harmed by the Spokane casino.  •  The U.S. Department of the Interior said last week it would take an additional week to decide whether the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe is eligible to put 151 acres in Taunton, Massachusetts into trust for its $600 million First Light Resort & Casino. Interior officials initially promised a decision by last week. The department initially put the land into trust for the tribe, only to have that decision overturned by a federal judge. The judge said the department used the wrong section of the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act to put the land into trust but said that it might be able to do so using a different section.  The Mashpees have been waiting for the department to determine if it could do so.