CAPTAIN SCOTT’S IS OPEN FOR BUSINESS
Amid skepticism from governor, Mohegan Sun pitches safety measures ahead of June 1 reopening
Captain Scott’s Lobster Dock in New London is open for outside dining. Restaurant seating is now weather-dependent until the second phase of Connecticut’s reopening.
In the face of opposition from the governor, Mohegan Sun executives Thursday sought to persuade the gambling public that it will be safe to return to the slot machines and gaming tables at the southeastern Connecticut casino come June 1 with early signs that COVID-19 is easing in the state.
In a tour for the media, executives touted the spending of more than a million dollars on safety measures, including the installation of ultraviolet lighting in air circulation systems, a method being piloted on subways in New York City to combat the coronavirus.
“There’s a lot of discussion around opening up,” said Jeff Hamilton, Mohegan Sun’s president and general manager. “You can put the ‘open’ sign up, but are people comfortable coming to your location? What are you doing to protect them? We think we’ve put together just a tremendous plan to keep our guests and our team members safe. But ultimately, that will be driven by our customers and our consumers.”
On Wednesday, Mohegan Sun and its longtime rival, Foxwood Resort Casino, announced they would reopen on a limited basis on June 1, drawing a rebuke from Gov. Ned Lamont who called the move “incredibly risky.” The casinos have been closed since March.
The tribal operators of both Mohegan Sun and Foxwoods, the latter planning a similar media tour Friday — said they would slowly reopen, with neither property opening its concert venues, buffets or poker rooms. Restaurants will be open for takeout only.
James Gessner, the Mohegan Tribal chairman, said Thursday, the reopening plans were shared with Lamont more than once, and followed up with his office. The tribe also has invited Lamont to visit. The governor reiterated his belief the casinos should remain closed, noting at a press conference that he has the authority to pull the casinos’ liquor licenses, although it’s premature.
“I talked to my fellow governors and they feel very strongly that this should be put off,” Lamont said. “So, we’re going to work collegially, I hope, with the tribes. They want to do everything they can to keep their people safe, keep their customers safe, keep the broader community safe.”
There is no firm timeline for reopening other parts of the casino. But that would be decided when it is considered safe, based on health data and collective experiences by the casino industry. Safety measures also could evolve, Hamilton said.
In its announcement, Mohegan Sun said it will cater to only Connecticut and Rhode Island residents, and not market to New York and Massachusetts, but state officials are concerned that gamblers will arrive from throughout the Northeast. Mohegan Sun also said it would not accept any buses and advise “at-risk” groups to stay home.
Hamilton Thursday reiterated those guidelines, but he said the casino would not turn away individual visitors who might not be from Connecticut and Rhode Island.
“At this time, we’re not going to do that,” Hamilton said.
The pandemic has shutdown casinos across the country, their bottom lines taking a big hit.
Bloomberg News reported that Mohegan Sun’s parent, Mohegan Gaming & Entertainment has, so far, been unsuccessful in borrowing $100 million to “tide itself over” until its casinos reopen. MGE owns or manages casinos elsewhere in the country, in Canada and is developing one in South Korea.
“We are not opening because we didn’t get the loan,” Chuck Bunnell, the Mohegan’s chief of staff, said Thursday after the tour. “That’s not the case. We are opening because it is time to open. It’s time because it’s safe to open.”
However, Bunnell acknowledged that it would be a helpful signal to lenders and investors that Mohegan Sun and other MGE casinos are reopening and taking in revenue.
At each of Mohegan Sun’s six entrances, visitor temperatures will be checked via a closed-circuit television scanner that will transmit the image of entering visitors to a nearby monitor watched by a security guard.
Above visitors’ heads, their temperatures will appear. If the reading is above, 100.2 degrees — lower than the 100.4 degrees recommended by the Centers for Disease Control, the temperature will appear in red, an alarm will go off, and the visitor will not be allowed to enter, Hamilton said.
Hamilton said the visitor will be given information for seeking medical treatment.
As the tour followed a path from the Winter Garage through the Sky Hotel lobby to the Casino of the Sky, there were signs reminding about social distancing, like those on elevator doors: “4 Aboard. To practice safe social distancing, please limit elevator passengers to four at a time.”
If large crowds gather, they will be reminded to disperse and practice social distancing.
Reminders about using hand sanitizers are at almost every turn. On the gambling floor, a sign on a sanitary wipe dispenser reads: “A clean hand is a winning hand.”
In the rows of slot machines, chairs have been removed to promote social distancing and alternating machines have been turned off, sometimes two.
At poker and blackjack tables, three of six seats have been removed and plexiglass barriers have been erected to separate dealer from gambler. Hand sanitizing will be required for playing and betting chips will be cleaned regularly.
The atmosphere was subdued on the gambling floor with music barely audible, the loudest sounds being workers installing readying the space with safety measures.
Initially, just 600 of 1,600 hotel rooms on the property will be available for booking, Hamilton said.
The casino’s operators, the Mohegan Tribal Nation, said employees will not be allowed to return to work unless they pass a stringent health questionnaire.
Hamilton said he hopes that 50% of the casino’s 5,000 full-time employees will be return to work in the first days of the opening.
Ramindre Walia, a physician and Mohegan Sun’s medical director, said he is confident about the safety measures that have been put in place.
“I feel safer over here than I would be at a grocery store,” Walia said, “and everybody goes to grocery stores. That’s the level that I am comfortable with.”