NEW YORK | Resorts World New York (Casino)

[NYguy]

http://www.queenscampaigner.com/2011...g-at-aqueduct/

Addabbo wants more gambling at Aqueduct



October 6, 2011
by Howard Koplowitz

With public opinion on his side, state Sen. Joseph Addabbo (D-Howard Beach) said Monday he is working with the operators of the Aqueduct racino to bring full-fledged gambling to the site and the rest of the state.

A Quinnipiac poll from Sept. 21 found 56 percent of state voters favor the creation of casinos “similar to those in Atlantic City and Las Vegas,” including 56 ?percent of city voters.

The Aqueduct racino, called Resorts World Casino New York, is expected to open this month and is legally restricted to offering only video lottery terminals — devices similar to slot machines — under state law.

[NYguy]

• Video Link
QueensLedgerTV

• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xt_gAQmbJWg" target="_blank">Video Link
jonfromqueens

[NYguy]

http://www.timesnewsweekly.com/news/...or_Racino.html

It’s Post Time For Racino

by Robert Pozarycki

Resorts World New York announced that it would welcome the first patrons to its Times Square Casino, developed within Aqueduct’s former grandstand, at 1 p.m. next Friday. The casino will house more than half of the 4,500 VLTs alloted to Aqueduct by the New York Lottery and state lawmakers.

Work continues on several other casinos, restaurants and entertainment venues at the site which will be opened “in the next two months,” according to Resorts World.

The Times Square Casino will feature approximately 2,485 VLTs— which are similar to slot machines found in most casinos—and electronic table games such as roulette and baccarat. Actual table games are currently prohibited under New York State law. The Times Square Casino also features a bar and lounge in the center of the gaming floor which will double as a venue for live music and entertainment.

Two more casinos on the second floor of Aqueduct’s grandstand— dubbed “Fifth Avenue” and “Crockfords”— are scheduled to open over the next two months along with the Central Park Events Center. These facilities will house the remaining 2,515 VLTs and electronic table games and include additional restau- rants and entertainment venues.

[NYguy]

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/28/ny...1&ref=nyregion

Experiencing Las Vegas, in Queens



Workers prepare gambling machines at Resorts World Casino New York City by the Aqueduct racetrack in Queens;
the casino is scheduled to open on Friday.



The new casino has 5,000 video terminals and electronic table games, but, in accordance with the law, no human dealers.


By DAN BILEFSKY
October 27, 2011

The new Resorts World casino opening Friday, with its flashing multicolored ceiling lights, electronic baccarat tables presided over by robotic dealers and a fake twinkling night sky created from satellite images of the sky over 42nd Street, seeks to offer a Las Vegas interpretation of Times Square. But the casino’s main innovation is that it is reachable by subway from the real Times Square.

Resorts World, owned by Genting New York, a subsidiary of the largest gambling company in England and Southeast Asia, says the casino will generate up to $1.5 million a day for the state. Also in the works are a climate-controlled bridge to the nearby Aqueduct North Conduit Avenue A train subway station and a shuttle to Kennedy International Airport. The doors will open at 1 p.m. on Friday, and at 8 a.m. beginning Saturday. Closing time is 4 a.m. seven days a week.

Only the ground-floor portion of the complex, called the Times Square Casino, will be open on Friday. The more elegant Fifth Avenue Casino, which will open on the second floor in December, will feature the upmarket RW Prime Steakhouse, fine Chinese cuisine and an expansive outdoor terrace where diners can overlook the track where Secretariat was paraded shortly before his retirement and where Pope John Paul II said Mass in front of 75,000 people. Another portion of the second floor is set aside for the Crockfords Casino, named after the upscale London casino also owned by Genting, designed for high-rollers and would-be Donald Trumps who will have access through a private entrance, after being delivered to Aqueduct in Champagne-stocked limousines.

____________________________

NY Post

• Video Link

[NYguy]

http://gawker.com/5854153/nycs-first-casino-opens-today

NYC’s First Casino Opens Today

Start spreading the news! We're leaving today! We wanna be a part of it: Resorts Worrrld, Resorts Worrrrld! At last, a viable alternative to gainful employment comes to the greater New York City area — in the form of legalized gambling! Drink for free! Stuff your purses with buffet items! Double your life savings on one bet! All your prayers have been answered, just as soon as you pilgrimage to the crown jewel of South Ozone Park: the Resorts World Casino New York City.

How are they getting away with this? Simple: Robots! New York State laws allow electronic gambling at racetracks. So all the baccarat tables, for example, feature no human dealers but actual cards shuffled by "robotlike mechanical arms." How can this not be a win-win situation for everyone? Robots. Alcohol. Gambling. Subway access. I'm sorry — Trump Taj Mawho?

__________________________________


http://www.pressofatlanticcity.com/n...cc4c002e0.html
Casino opening in New York City may deal another blow to Atlantic City gaming market



October 27, 2011
By DONALD WITTKOWSKI

The explosive growth of casino gambling across the country finally has made its way to the nation's biggest city, creating even more competition for the slumping Atlantic City market.

Boasting some familiar New York themes, an $830 million casino opens Friday at the Aqueduct racetrack in Queens. Dubbed Resorts World Casino New York City, it initially will feature 2,280 video slot machines and 205 electronic table games amid some Times Square-inspired decor, its operator says. A second phase of the casino, slated to open in December, will include an extra 2,245 video slots and 270 electronic table games in a more upscale Fifth Avenue-style setting. There also will be a special-events center and concert hall evoking a Central Park theme.

While it may represent good news for New York, the Aqueduct casino is another setback for the competition-weary Atlantic City marketplace. Atlantic City now is at risk of losing a chunk of its New York-North Jersey feeder market to Aqueduct, gaming executives and analysts say. "Certainly it can't help. It's going to hurt. But I don't think it's going to hurt nearly as much as competition from Pennsylvania," said Tony Rodio, president and chief executive officer of Tropicana Casino and Resort. Rodio believes that Atlantic City will not be the only market to suffer from extra competition in New York. He said casinos in Connecticut, Rhode Island and Pennsylvania also will take a hit.

[NYguy]

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB1000...363875676.html

Gamblers Swarm Aqueduct




Lucky gamblers at play at the Resorts World Casino New York City on Friday.




Some of the many would-be gamblers in line outside.


By SHELLY BANJO
October 29, 2011

Not everyone got lucky Friday outside the newly opened Aqueduct racetrack casino.

By mid-afternoon of its opening day, a mile-long line snaked around the Resorts World Casino New York City in Queens as the city's first racino hit its 5,000-person capacity. After standing in line for hours, some of the impatient gamblers grumbled, pushed and shouted at police officers. Some began to turn away.

"We'd love to let everyone in but we're at capacity and at this point safety is the most important thing," said Stefan Friedman, a spokesman for the casino. "We're open every day from 8 a.m. to 4 a.m., so there will be plenty of time for everyone." The casino estimated that 20,000 people showed up for opening day Friday. Others felt like they hit the jackpot just by getting inside. Shrieking and singing along to what seemed like a '90s soundtrack, one man waved around $20 bills while others snapped pictures of the racino's "Light of Nations" sculpture, made up of 193 hand-blown glass bulbs that hung from the entranceway.

________________________________



http://www.cnn.com/2011/10/28/us/new-york-casino/

New York's first casino opens to packed crowds

By Mick B. Krever, CNN
October 28, 2011

For New Yorkers, a gambling fix is now just a subway ride away.

The first casino in New York City opened Friday at the Aqueduct Racetrack in Queens to thousands of eager gamblers, some waiting hours to get in. "It was such a hassle to get in, but I'm glad I'm here," said Carmen Beverly, who said she took the subway to the casino from her home in nearby Brooklyn. "Not winning anything yet, but I'm having fun."

The Resorts World Casino hit capacity almost immediately after opening, organizers said. Lines stretched around the building as police struggled to contain hundreds of people hoping for opening-day luck.

____________________________________________



http://gothamist.com/2011/10/28/gamb...pens_today.php

Gamblers Swarm To Play Slots At New Queens "Racino"

After years of development and various corruption allegations, today a casino complete with over 2,000 slot machines and 2,000 electronic game tables opened up at the Queens Aqueduct Racetrack. The Resorts World New York has a shuttle bus for eager gamblers (there's subway service to Aqueduct Racetrack Station only on race days, 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.). However, the crowd is so big that our reporter on the scene has been waiting there for nearly two hours for the bus and the NYPD just put out a "crowd control" for Rockaway Boulevard & 101 Street. What recession?!?!

_____________________________________________


http://www.qchron.com/news/thousands...cc4c002e0.html

Thousands flock to Aqueduct casino for opening


Renee Cole, a Lady Gaga impersonator from Brooklyn, spent opening day posing with a countless number of amused gamers.
Cole spent about eight hours making her costume, which included about 400 playing cards.



A view looking out at the Times Square Casino from Bar 360.



Thousands of people from throughout the tri-state area waited hours to get into the Resorts World New York City Casino on Friday.



Residents from throughout Queens tried their luck at the casino on Friday.



Felicia Bayanbs, of Brooklyn, came to the opening with her friend, Mercedes Payamps, also of Brooklyn.

[antinimby]

I'm curious what those electronic table games with their "robotic arms" look like.

[NYC4Life]

NYC could easily become the next gambling mecca, at least on the east coast, if full gambling becomes legalized. If Resorts World can get that sort of crowd on its opening day imagine the crowds and potential revenue from a full blown casino.

[J. Will]

New York hasn't even legalized MMA. It could be years before they legalize proper casinos.

[NYguy]

Full opening by the end of the year, so maybe the crowds won't be as bad (who wants to stand in line just to get in), but then again, the crowds are only going to grow once it becomes a regular destination for New Yorkers and tourists alike...

http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/l...sDGunUcd6sqCNO

Lobbyists cash in on racinos’ big bet

By CARL CAMPANILE
October 31, 2011

Ka-ching! Lobbyists have hit the jackpot with the campaign to expand casino gambling in New York. Gambling interests have spent more than $2.5 million on lobbying over the past year -- with the lion’s share coming from firms representing the state’s nine track racinos, including Resorts World, which just opened at Aqueduct in Queens, records reviewed by The Post show.

Ka-ching! Lobbyists have hit the jackpot with the campaign to expand casino gambling in New York.

Gambling interests have spent more than $2.5 million on lobbying over the past year -- with the lion’s share coming from firms representing the state’s nine track racinos, including Resorts World, which just opened at Aqueduct in Queens, records reviewed by The Post show.

myfoxny.com

• Video Link



• Video Link



• Video Link

[NYguy]

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencete...=feeds-newsxml

Casino trumps anti-gambling laws by replacing human croupiers with ROBOTS

By Simon Tomlinson
31st October 2011

New York's first casino has opened to a frenzied crowd after successfully side-stepping gambling laws - by staffing its tables with robots.
The Aqueduct racino - so called because it is connected with the race track in South Ozone Park, Queens - has done away with human dealers in favour of mechanical arms.

To remain in accordance with state rules that prevent human-operated table games, guests shot craps using two fingers and a touch screen.
Meanwhile, a roulette game was supervised by a chesty cyber-woman who leaned forward immodestly as she spun the little white ball on a pixilated wheel. But some gamblers weren't so impressed. 'It's very confusing,' Lennox Bailey, 35, told the New York Daily News after trying his hand at computerised baccarat. 'I like it better with the people... this is just you and the machine.'

JohnPaul Difava, a 'slot ambassador' for the casino, argued the faceless table games were 'better than going all the way to Atlantic City.'
'I'm sure there will be a lot of confusion in the beginning, but once you get the hang of it, it's pretty easy,' he said.

[NYguy]

MrBillyflash
• Video Link


• Video Link

[NYguy]

http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/r...9EZ6KQPLpYrdTK

Racino rolls big winner

By CARL CAMPANILE
November 2, 2011

Watch out, Atlantic City.

The Aqueduct racino in Queens drew 65,000 customers during its first weekend of operation -- a figure that wowed even veteran gaming executives, who call it a shot across the bow of neighboring Jersey and Connecticut casinos. “We were truly humbled by the astounding welcome we received on opening weekend. This reception exceeded everyone’s expectations,’’ said Michael Speller, president of Resorts World New York at Aqueduct.

“Sex and the City” and “Wheel of Fortune” were the top two machines one-armed bandits, sources said.

The racino, which includes more than 2,200 slot machines and 200 electronic table games, was even at two-thirds capacity on Monday, the sources said. Another floor, with 2,500 additional gaming machines and amenities, will be added in mid-December.

[NYguy]

http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/b...u4QJ1dpMy4ciTI

Bettors $tampede to new Queens racino

By CARL CAMPANILE
November 8, 2011

The new Aqueduct racino in Queens is a cash cow. In its first 10 days of operation, bettors pumped a hefty $15 million into the slot machines and electronic table games, sources told The Post. That’s an average of some $1.5 million in business per day -- not including what customers spent on drinks and food.

Gaming-industry insiders and community leaders said early results show that the Big A racino is a rousing success. “It’s a home run,” said James Featherstonhaugh, head of the New York Gaming Association, an umbrella group that represents the state’s nine racinos. “Aqueduct’s opening has gone very well, very smoothly.”

Sources close to Genting, the gaming company that operates Aqueduct Resorts World, note that the phased-in opening leaves room for growth.

It opened last month as a half-casino, with 2,200 slot machines such as “Sex and the City” and “Wheel of Fortune,” and 200 electronic table games, including Baccarat and sic bo. Another floor, with 2,500 additional gaming machines and amenities, will be added in mid-December.

Genting and other racino operators are pushing for state legislation that would permit them to operate live table games, which would elevate the facilities to full-fledged casinos and boost earnings further.

[NYguy]

http://www.horseraceinsider.com/John...-is-the-big-a/

Where In the World is The Big A?

November 29, 2011

It was a dark day, figuratively and literally, a day local racing press veterans would describe as a quintessential “Aqueduct day.” I rolled through a new entrance on Rockaway Boulevard, where once little booths that collected parking admissions stood, and drove straight towards the multi-tiered parking garage. “Where can I park?” I asked a uniformed attendant. “Just follow the road around, park your car, walk through the doors and you’re in the casino.” “OK, but the sign said the lot is full.” “Sir, there’s room for five thousand cars in the garage and there are plenty of spots, it’s not full.” “Fine, then you should move that sign,” thinking this is not a good start to my first visit to World Resorts Casino New York City but nothing out of the ordinary in this part of the free world...

Rows of carrels were set up in front of several fairly large screens, about a dozen people to a row, all with glitzy interactive monitors in front of them to bet on as they held stacks of cards, seemingly for score keeping purposes. All but a handful were Asians, the dominant demographic this day, but clearly only a part of the melting pot in attendance that is New York City. All groups were well represented. It’s approaching 11 a.m. and not a seat was available in this particular baccarat section. Think I counted four or five of them. Of all the people we saw in our 2-½ hour visit, the crowd was younger than one you generally see in a racino with VLTs. This wasn’t the mall-walking brigade I was looking at by any means. There goes another siren, which Munick had told me earlier meant someone had just won big. The first time I heard it I was looking for an exit as it sounded suspiciously like a fire alarm. But no one seemed alarmed; Ernie was right. There were two wonders of the world I was told were must-see items; a three-story chandelier and a 100-foot television monitor at Bar 360. Yes, drinking in the round; “the place to see and be seen,” said the advertisements...

This is one “racino” where the racetrack is not a badly kept secret and that was very good too see. There are windows that also look out onto the track from a High Limit VLT betting area.

The building is nowhere near finished and is fairly spectacular already. This is no lipstick on a pig. The covered walkway leading from the subway stop directly into the building was bustling and seems near completion. The second floor, expected to be even more lavish, is scheduled to open December 15.

[NYguy]

http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/...ticle-1.985624

Gov. Andrew Cuomo likely to get support of Albany leaders Dean Skelos and Sheldon Silver for more casinos
Voters would get to decide on constitutional amendment under plan supported by Cuomo, Skelos and Silver



BY Kenneth Lovett
December 1 2011

Legislative leaders are prepared to join Gov. Cuomo in rolling the dice on casino gambling.

A spokesman for Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos said the Nassau GOPer “is supportive of a constitutional amendment that will let the people decide whether to expand casino gambling in New York State.” Aides for Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver (D-Manhattan) said their boss will also support the legalization of casinos.

If the Legislature moves forward, the soonest the public would have a say on a referendum is 2013. Cuomo is not expected to say where he thinks the casinos should be located.

His team put the operators of the state’s nine racinos — including one at Aqueduct — on notice that their licenses could be subject to a new bidding process.

[NYguy]

http://www.timesledger.com/stories/2...1_12_08_q.html

Last 2,500 VLTs, 2 eateries soon to open at Aqueduct



By Howard Koplowitz

The operator of the racino at Aqueduct Race Track is getting set to open the last remaining video lottery terminals and electronic gaming tables at the property next week.

Resorts World Casino New York will also unveil two new floors at the facility, including the 5th Avenue Casino to complement the Times Square Casino that opened last month. The final 2,514 VLTs out of 5,000 total at Resorts World will be available for play starting Dec. 16.

Also on the new floors will be two, 250-seat dining facilities — the Asian-themed Genting Palace and the RW Prime steakhouse — and the Central Park Events Center, which Resorts World billed as the largest event and catering space in the borough.

The new additions are opening four months ahead of schedule, Resorts World said. “We have been truly humbled by the response of New Yorkers and tourists alike and we thank them for their ongoing support and patronage,” said Resorts World New York President Michael Speller.

[NYguy]

http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/...ticle-1.990518

Aqueduct racino set to open exclusive, luxury gaming floor
Second tier caters to frequent visitors and high rollers



Resorts World New York is putting the finishing touches on the second phase of the Aqueduct racino in South Ozone Park, Queens, set to open on Friday.


BY Irving Dejohn
December 12 2011

“The main difference is the finishes and it’s more comfortable,” said Resorts World President Michael Speller.

Seats at the terminals, which offer the same games as those on the first floor, will be reserved for patrons that meet certain benchmarks in frequency of visits and money spent, officials said.

The pinnacle of Resorts World’s new opulent offerings is the Crockfords Casino, an invitation-only room where the wagers can go as high as $5,000 a pop, officials said. The Crockfords area has marble accents in its walkway, gold detailing on the ceiling and a private elevator.

The third floor of the $880 million project is a 130,000-square-foot event space that will also open on Friday.

Speller said he has already fielded calls about the cavernous hall, which he said could be used for business meetings, concerts and other events.

“We could do some very exciting things in here,” he gushed.

________________________________________




http://queenscourier.com/2011/resort...early-opening/

Resorts World’s new gaming floor set for early opening



By Steve Mosco
December 13th

After a highly successful partial opening that saw thousands of gamers try their luck, the new casino in South Ozone Park is ready to reveal the rest of the facility on Friday, December 16 — a full four months ahead of schedule.

The additional space on the second floor will double the amount of Video Lottery Terminals (VLT) and Electronic Table Games (ETG), while also adding an upscale gaming option and two signature restaurants with views of the track below. Resorts World representatives also revealed a third floor, which will house the largest event space in Queens.

Although casino construction is moving swiftly, the same cannot be said for the “Skybridge,” which is designed to move customers from the A-train station to the casino without stepping outdoors. That development is moving at a slower pace and has been pushed back to early spring.

[NYguy]

http://www.observer.com/2011/12/gamb...city-12212011/

New Yorkers Want to Gamble, Say New Yorkers




By Foster Kamer 12/21

So apparently that new Aqueduct casino—or raceino, or Robot Casino, or whatever you’d like to call it—has inspired gambling fever amongst citizens of the Empire State. Maybe it was all the Sex and the City slots.

Or maybe it’s always been there. Whatever the case, a Quinnipiac poll released today shows New Yorkers not just in favor, but strongly in favor of legalized casino gambling in the city:

New York State voters support 64 – 31 percent Atlantic City or Las Vegas style casinos in the Empire State. Think about it: How much better would Times Square be if they replaced Red Lobster with a bunch of craps tables? Or all of Times Square with a bunch of craps tables? Even better, on even a bad year, Nevada rakes in $851M in taxes from gambling revenue.

__________________________


http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/...sEnabled=false
New poll shows New Yorkers want full-scale casinos
Gov. Cuomo is pushing for casinos to boost the state's economy



BY Glenn Blain
December 21 2011

New Yorkers are going all in for casino gambling, a new poll shows.

A Quinnipiac University survey out Wednesday showed a whopping 64% of state voters - and 65% of city voters - favored Atlantic City or Las Vegas style casinos in New York, up from 56% who favored such casinos in September.

"New Yorkers say shuffle and deal," said Quinnipiac pollster Maurice Carroll.

Only 31% of New York voters opposed legalized casino gambling and another 68% said such casinos would be good for the state's economy, the poll found.

Gov. Cuomo has called for legalized gambling in the state and is expected next year to propose changing the state's Constitution to do so.

The governor has yet to detail where in the state he'd allow casinos.

[NYguy]

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/...b43fe476a792c8

NY gov seeks Aqueduct convention center, casinos

By MICHAEL GORMLEY
Jan 4, 2011

A privately funded plan to build the world's biggest convention center in New York City with 3,000 hotel rooms and an inside track to expanded gambling got a powerful boost Wednesday from Gov. Andrew Cuomo.

Cuomo pushed for a development company's proposal for Aqueduct racetrack in Queens in his State of the State speech as part of his recommendation to grow gambling in a bid to create jobs and shore up sagging state tax revenues.

The proposed $4 billion, nearly 4 million-square-foot convention center in Queens between New York City's major airports would replace the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center in Manhattan.

"Let's build the largest convention center in the nation, period," Cuomo said.

Reactions from legislative leaders indicated no immediate opposition. New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg said New York City needs a bigger convention center to draw more visitors. "Aqueduct would probably make a decent location," he said, noting it has the advantage of available land.

The New York Daily News first reported Wednesday the project would be funded by the Genting Group of Malaysia. Genting runs the video slot machine center at Aqueduct.