The New York Gaming Commission has agreed to let Resorts World Catskills and Tioga Downs Casino Resort pare their slot machine numbers as both properties continue to struggle with disappointing gaming revenues.
The commission said it found that allowing the casinos to reduce some inventory will help “maximize the efficiency of asset utilization and patron opportunity without negative effects on the patron experience, facility employment or state revenue.”
Resorts World requested the removal of 550 of the 2,150 units required by its license, a cut of 26 percent. Tioga Downs is reducing its 942 units to 892, a 5 percent cut.
The machines are video lottery terminals that play like slot machines but operate on a pari-mutuel system. Traditional house-banked games are not permitted in New York.
Commission spokesman Brad Maione said the reductions will not affect
the state’s tax collections or employment levels at the properties.
“It is common industry practice to adjust the number of slot and tables assets and configurations after opening, based on market conditions,” he said.
The agreement comes two months after Resorts World owner, Empire Resorts, said it will close the gaming floor at nearby Monticello Raceway next month. The racino has around 1,100 VLTs.
Since opening last February as the last and most expensive of four upstate commercial casinos authorized by a 2013 voter referendum, Resorts World’s average daily slot win of $119 has been the lowest per unit in the state. Resorts World said last week the reduction will allow it to adjust the gaming floor with the current demand, saying it can “provide a much better experience with more room on the floor”.
Tioga Downs, which is also shedding two of its electronic table games, has averaged around $200 in daily slot win per machine. “We had more slots and tables than we needed, but needed space to provide for sports betting,” owner Jeff Gural said.
Resorts World has had greater success with its e-tables, focusing its marketing on deeper-pocketed gamblers from New York City roughly 90 miles to the south.
Since their debut at the end of 2016, all four of the upstate commercial casinos, including del Lago Resort & Casino in the Finger Lakes and Rivers Casino & Resort in Schenectady, have fallen short of their initial win projections in a crowded New York market that includes nine racetracks, eight racinos, seven tribal casinos with Las Vegas-style slots and live table games, off-track betting and a state lottery.
The four are the only commercial operations permitted sports betting under current state law, and they’re looking to the books to offer some relief. The books are expected to be in business by late spring or early summer.
