NEWS & NOTES

MacauSecretary for Economy and Finance Lionel Leong Vai Tac has announced that he will not seek re-election for local deputies to the 13th National People’s Congress. Leong said he prefers to focus on his primary position. Leong has been a local NPC deputy for the past two five-year terms and was appointed secretary for economy and finance in 2014.  ?  A suspension of construction work at SJM Holdings Ltd.’s new Cotai casino resort Grand Lisboa Palace has been ongoing for more than a month. The work halt was ordered by Macau’s Labour Affairs Bureau on June 18 after a Chinese construction worker fell to his death.  ?  Macau’s Judiciary Police recently arrested 15 Mainland Chinese for alleged involvement in loan-sharking operations targeting gamblers at Cotai casinos.  ?  Japan’s National Police Agency says the maximum pachinko profit for four hours of pachinko will be set at less than $US438, about half of the current US$876. The NPA says around 70 percent of pachinko addicts in recovery stated they lost at least US$438 per month.  ?  Stratosphere owner American Casino and Entertainment Properties has chosen Best Western’s BW Premier as the Las Vegas resort’s hotel brand. The agreement includes the company’s Aquarius Casino Resort in Laughlin, Nev. American is under sale to Las Vegas-based pub and slot route operator Golden Entertainment, an $850 million deal that is expected to close the end of this year.   •  The New Jersey Casino Control Commission has signed off on the Chapter 11 reorganization of Caesars Entertainment Operating Company. The Caesars Entertainment subsidiary owns the Bally’s and Caesars Atlantic City casino hotels.  •  Las Vegas’ Ellis Island casino has started construction of a $10 million dining and entertainment venue. Scheduled to open later this year, The Front Yard, as it’s called, will cover two stories, with two bars and a kitchen and space for 300 guests. The property also is in the midst of a $20 million upgrade of its hotel product, which includes a neighboring Super 8 Motel.  •  Cirque du Soleil has acquired Blue Man Productions, whose long-running Blue Man Group has been a staple of the Las Vegas entertainment market. BMP also operates permanent shows in New York, Boston, Chicago and Orlando, Fla., a world tour and a permanent international show in Berlin. Cirque is majority owned by private equity firm TPG. Terms of the sale were not disclosed.  •  A court-appointed arbitrator has awarded Las Vegas’ Westgate hotel $2.2 million in a dispute over unpaid rent with the organizer of a 2014-15 Elvis memorabilia show. The Westgate, formerly the Las Vegas Hilton, and before that the International Hotel, was the site of Presley’s long run as a Vegas headliner.  •  Apollo Global Management is buying golf course giant ClubCorp Holdings for $1.1 billion. ClubCorp owns or operates more than 200 private golf, country and private clubs, including California’s Mission Hills, the Woodlands in Texas, Firestone Country Club in Akron, Ohio, and the Capital Club Beijing. The portfolio includes two Las Vegas courses, Canyon Gate Country Club and Bear’s Best Las Vegas.  •  The Grey Wolf Peak Casino, owned and operated by the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes near Missoula, Montana, reopened last week after a renovation that added a new eatery and gaming tables. The warmer weather has brought back customers who stayed away during the long winter, so that the Players Club has grown to 3,800, according to CEO Bryon Miller.  •  Tulalip Resorts Casino in Washington state has agreed to sponsor Ainsworth Game Technology for the central determination gaming system test required before the system can be used by other casinos in the state. Testing will be done on Ainsworth A600 cabinets that have three of the company’s most popular games, including Cash Cave, Mustang Fortune and Twice the Diamonds.  •  Jackson Rancheria, the California-based tribe that operates Jackson Rancheria Casino Resort, has announced the launch of a live stream music site that will offer old school music. Rancheria Radio will stream music without commercials or sponsor adds on its website and free mobile app. It will offer four channels, with one carrying mainstream Top-40, another with alternative rock, one with adult contemporary and country. The DJ says “For me, it’s about being able to have old-school radio and not have corporate America breathing down our necks.” The casino sees the “radio” station as a way to keep guests informed about the casino and resort.  •  Thunder Valley Casino in Lincoln, California announced last week that it plans to hire hundreds of new employees, but not to expand. According to spokesman Doug Elmets, “finding people in this market is certainly a challenge, and we’re being particularly aggressive to let people know about jobs that include good benefits.” An area business that connects businesses with workers calls the talent pool “real thin right now.” California as a whole has a low unemployment rate, and Sacramento County’s employment rate is 4.2 percent, down from 4.6 percent in April.