Yesterday, the long-anticipated Monticello, New York casino,
approved by voters over four years ago, opened its doors. With fewer than one third of its anticipated
332 hotel rooms available, many restaurants still in construction, and Resorts
World Catskills’ centerpiece golf course not to be ready until next year, it’s
a soft opening, but weeks ahead of schedule that’s nothing to be ashamed of.
The gaming facility will have two special emphases. First it is trying to cater, more than other
regional casinos, to high rollers, with private gambling areas and high-end
accommodations. Second, with
Mandarin-speaking staff and large layouts for the dice game sic bo, similar to
ones I saw crowded with players in Macau, it is seeking eastern Asian
customers. It has already been credited
with creating anywhere from 1,400 to 2,200 jobs. Additionally, in a departure from the casino
model created by Bugsy Siegel over 70 years ago and still in use worldwide, it
has large windows, perhaps emphasizing its integration with instead of
separation from its surrounding area.
How has employment worked out so far? In June 2015, before significant construction
had started, Sullivan had 32,441 people employed and 5.3% unemployment, higher
than neighboring Orange and Ulster counties’ 4.8%. A year later, Sullivan had shrunk the gap
from 0.5% to 0.2%, and was up to 33,045 working and down to 4.2% unemployment. By June 2017, possibly the building peak,
Sullivan County, though now at 4.4% joblessness, was tied with Ulster and
better than Orange, with 33,653 employed.
Given that these numbers reflect county residents instead of in-county
employment, these statistics do not clearly show Sullivan’s work-opportunity changes,
but a net gain of over 1,200 positions for a place of this size is noteworthy –
and residents of nearby counties have also been helped.
As for Resorts World Catskills’ future, we can only
speculate. Some comments coming out now
look oversold, particularly the idea that the facility will, by itself, return
the Catskills to its postwar tourism glory.
Its emphasis on large bettors may not work out. If it starts with results as disappointing as
those from other new state casinos, we hope the owners have the patience and can
implement the business changes to achieve a turnaround. The idea of catering to Asian players could
be either visionary or quixotic, yet we should expect that chief Empire Resorts
owner K.T. Lim, a billionaire Malaysian of Chinese descent, can bring them in
and get them what they want.
All the advantages, though, I cited in an August 2013 blog
post still apply. The increased tax
revenues will help the state as well as the community, with many New Yorkers certain
to choose it over competitors in Connecticut, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey. Tourism to the area will rise, with legal,
fair, modern gambling, and other entertainment, becoming part of what the
Catskills offer. Those of us living in
the area will have, along with the gaming opportunities, additional access to
concerts, restaurants, nightclubs, golf, and waterparking. The casino includes a poker room, giving the
many people who play that game, in a category apart from others since it is not
against the house, its only public Sullivan County venue. Those unable to tolerate gambling have many
casino-arranged resources, including the ability to bar themselves,
available. The resort is confined to its
land and will not threaten widespread environmental destruction as did the
previous large opportunity, fracking. Accordingly, all we can do is cheer for it,
because, at this point, if the casino wins we will as well.
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