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AC News: 5-Year iGaming Lease on Life, Borgata Turns 20, Indoor Waterpark Delays Opening

5_year_igaming_lease_on_life_borgata_turns_20_indoor_waterpark_delays_openingIn news from Atlantic City, New Jersey we’ll explore a potential new 5-year authorization to continue online gambling at casinos located in the seaside resort city on the Jersey Shore.

We’ll take a look at a 20-years-young casino that has consistently led the market in footfall and table-take, internet gaming, and innovation. And finally, we’ll check in on The Showboat, a former casino slated to become the world’s largest beachside indoor waterpark. Bill Blatstein’s Island Waterpark was slated to open 4th of July weekend but the opening was pushed back at least a week due to a delay in permits for the rides there.

Lawmakers Consider 5-Year Extension of Atlantic City iGaming

Nobody is quite sure why lawmakers in New Jersey recently shortened the time they are extending online gambling in the state from 10 years to only 5 years – cutting in half operators’ ability to secure long-term financing, establish profitable business plans, or borrow against potential future earnings to expand offerings.

The move was made by amendment without public debate or prior announcement last Tuesday. It cut initially cut the timeline to 2 years in what was seen by some as posturing to show who holds the purse strings when it comes time to decide who pays how much in taxes to the state. The current authorization is set to expire this year. No final vote has been held yet on the 2-year, five-year, or 10-year extension.

Internet gambling taxes are currently the highest among the three sectors at 15% while sportsbetting venues pay 13%, and in-person or brick-and-mortar casinos pay just 8% on the money they win from players.

Don Guardian, a former mayor of Atlantic City and current Assemblyman said, “We’re all trying to figure out what happened,” according to a report in the Associated Press.

A 10-year extension as originally provided for in the bill is ”crucial” to the casinos’ ongoing successful operations according to Mark Giannantonio, president of Resorts Casino as well as the Casino Association of New Jersey.

“The reauthorization of the internet gaming bill for 10 years is vital to the continued success of the gaming industry in New Jersey and the programs that are supported by the taxes collected,” he said.

Assemblyman Guardian cautioned that the shortened time frame could devastate the metric of commercial gambling in the city where online operators lead the six states that currently offer regulated online casino gaming. Rhode Island lawmakers recently authorized online casino gambling but those casinos, to be operated by Bally’s and IGT, are not expected to come online until early 2024.

Guardian said, “No one is going to invest money in a company that has (a brand) if you only have two more years. Those things < establishing an online identity and recognition>cost money. This has been what’s helping keep Atlantic City alive.”

Gamblers at Atlantic City’s online casinos have left over $6 billion in the virtual machines and on the tables since providers in the state started taking internet bets in November 2013. This, is according to the American Gaming Association, the national trade and lobbying organization that represents America’s comercial casino industry. The number is counted separately from New Jersey online sports betting operators’ revenues.

Online gaming revenues are credited with helping their land-based counterparts survive the Covid-19 shutdowns at the start of the world health emergency when physical doors were shut for more than a quarter of 2020. They also helped the books heal as many gamblers stayed away soon after the doors re-opened, wary of exposure.

Borgata Marks Two Decades as Game Changer

Twenty years ago, MGM Mirage and Boyd Gaming joined forces under the leadership of former Borgata CEO Bob Boughner and marshaled resources and a new commitment to the Marina District when others were pulling back or even pulling out – the extraordinary investments and follow-through on a commitment set the stage for the iconic hotel and casino to rise above the fray and start a winning streak that continues today. Even as losers and also-rans pulled out, the Borgata dug deeper and dug in to stay.

According to an article in the Press of Atlantic City: “In line with trends happening in Las Vegas, the Borgata Casino & Spa featured high-end design features in the hotel rooms, on the casino floor, and in its restaurants and nightclubs that were superior to what was available at the other casino hotels in Atlantic City at the time,” faculty director for Stockton University’s Lloyd D. Levenson Institute of Gaming, Hospitality & Tourism, School of Business, Jane Bokunewicz said.

According to Bokunewics, Borgata set a high bar and established itself as a top-tier destination on par with the better properties in Las Vegas and this either forced or inspired other operators to “keep up with the Joneses” in terms of quality which established Atlantic City as a premiere destination resort city.

The Borgata, as it was known then, after all, was designed to appeal to a luxury-minded segment of the potential customer base with sleek and modern room designs, upscale marble showers, celebrity chef restaurants, vaulted ceilings above the casino floor, and exciting bars and nightclubs. Some other operators were able to pull it off and others failed or gave up while others around them were making money from their investments.

More than 800 day-one employees and workers who moved up into management are still working there. Most were on hand over the weekend to take part in festivities as part f the resort’s summer=long “birthday bash” that included a 1,000-foot “light show” featuring 500 lighted drones.

Earlier, the property announced it had opened a new high-limit slots lounge as well as the unveiling of new luxury suites at the hotel.

Borgata Celebrates 20th Birthday
The Press of Atlantic City, July 1, 2023

Island Waterpark at Showboat Resort

World’s Biggest Indoor Beachside Waterpark Opening Delayed

Those who came to Atlantic City for 4th of July Weekend celebrations and expected to be among the first to visit Island Waterpark will go home disappointed in that respect unless they stick around until at least the following weekend beginning on July 7th.

Showboat developer Bart Blatstein is now saying that the 100,000-square-foot attraction will not open before then.

In a prepared statement, Blatstein said, “You only have one chance to make a first impression. This is the world’s largest indoor beachfront waterpark and a destination that will last many decades, so I want to ensure everything is perfect.”

Multiple media reports are saying it was a delay in permits for some of the rides that caused the delay rather than some loose ends or aesthetics that weren’t ready yet.

New Jersey state Department of Community Affairs (DCA) spokeswoman Lisa Ryan said in a statement found at Press of Atlantic City: “The Island Waterpark at Showboat rides are currently in the approval process. DCA is working in cooperation with the waterpark owner to ensure the ride documentation submittal, review, and approval process is followed and completed.”

Marty Small, Atlantic City’s Mayor noted that a few “technical issues” need to be cleared up.

“We’d rather be a million percent sure,” Small said, according to the Philidelphia Inquirer. “The bottom line is, we’ve had dreams of a waterpark in the great city of Atlantic City fail multiple times. People doubted Bart Blatstein. The waterpark is beautiful.”

According to digital literature and earlier media report, the $100 million Jersey Shore seaside attraction will feature three head-first slides; tube slides, a 1,000-square-foot surf simulator; a 6,500-square-foot lazy river; five waterslides for younger children at the park’s Slide Island, and a kid’s area called Kids Cove.

But it’s not all “kids’ stuff” at Island Waterpark. There will also be plenty for adults to do
“ After dark” including with six bars featuring craft beer, wine, and cocktails; Paradise Adult Island, a 10,000-square-foot entertainment and relaxation space overlooking the ocean and waterpark with live DJs; and Bliss Pool featuring a swim-up bar reserved for adults only.

Nor is the price easy on the wallet to visit this one-of-a-kind AC wonder with adult tickets (VIP) running $119 for all access and regular daytime entry costing $89. Those who visit between 4 p.m. and 8 p.m. can get a discount with a $69 entry ticket.

Source: Atlantic City indoor waterpark opening postponed over incomplete permits, Philly Voice, July 1, 2023

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Seminole Tribe, DeSantis Win Florida Sports Bet Ruling

seminole_tribe_desantis_win_florida_sports_bet_rulingAn error by a federal judge soon after sportsbooks launched in Florida lawmakers on the budget committee along with recipients of state funding as well as Gov. Ron DeSantis have scored a rather large victory in court – worth at least $2.5 billion and as much as $6b by some estimates.

A three-judge panel on the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals has rejected a challenge to the 2021 state/tribal gaming compact in Florida that authorized the Seminole Tribe there to offer mobile sports betting. The practice was banned soon after books opened for business in 2021 and online sports betting in the state has been deemed in violation of the law since that time.

Sports Betting Could Open Back Up in Florida Right Away

However, that could change at any time with the new ruling. Sportsbetting could return to Florida virtually overnight.

In a nutshell, the judges decided that any conflict with the opposing party needed to be settled under state law as none of the assertions made actually had anything to do with federal law. So, while it may appear to be a landmark decision, it was really more of a venue correction than anything else in the final analysis and an appeal by the plaintiffs could send the industry right back into a death spiral at any time with a challenge to the decision and an injunction.

The Seminole Tribe applauded the decision but stopped short of saying it would resume sports betting right away.

A lawyer representing the casinos that had challenged the compact pointed out what the plaintiff side saw as nonsensical – according to Hamish Hume, the court had somehow “recognized” that federal gambling laws “cannot authorize gambling off of Indian lands, but then upheld a compact that purports on its face to do exactly that.”

The legal counsel stated, “We respectfully disagree with that decision, and are evaluating our possible next steps.”

The federal appeals court’s reversal of a lower court judge’s order was personally and politically important for Florida Governor Ron DeSantis because he personally lobbied lawmakers to pass the compact in 2021.

A spokesman for the governor stated: “While we are not surprised the lower court’s perplexing ruling was unanimously overturned, this is great news for Florida,” Mahon said in an email to Politico. “We will continue working with the Seminole Tribe of Florida to ensure the success of this historic compact — the largest gaming compact in US history.”

A spokesman for the Seminole Tribe said of the most recent decision: “The Seminole Tribe of Florida is pleased with today’s unanimous decision. It is a positive outcome for the Seminole Tribe and the people of Florida and for all of Indian Country. The Tribe is fully reviewing the decision to determine its next steps.”

New Compact Also Authorizes Table Games

In addition to authorizing sports betting the “new compact” also allowed the tribe to offer table games such as craps and roulette to its existing slots casinos and to build at least one more casino on its reservation the Hollywood area which already has a Hard Rock Hotel & Casino.

In the ruling that blocked implementation of the compact, D.C. District Judge Dabney Friedrich decided the compact was beyond what the laws allowed because it let people place sports bets anywhere in the state – which could be a violation of federal law that govern gambling on Tribal lands.

The impetus of the adverse decision was a pair of lawsuits brought by an anti-gambling group active in Florida, another that focuses primarily on the southern part of the state and casino competitors. Plaintiffs had sued U.S. Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland, who didn’t block the compact but instead took no action and allowed it to automatically come into effect after some time as prescribed by law.

The erring judge also determined that it would take a new citizens’ initiative to authorize sports betting under the premise that voters passed a law in 2018 that required any expansion of casino gambling without a citizen’s initiative – that law was supported by both Disney Corp and the Tribe.

The Tribe and DeSantis relied on the legal theory that bets processed on servers physically situated on tribal lands were indeed placed “on the Reservation”. The Trump-appointed judge called that a “fiction” and stated that: “When a federal statute authorizes an activity only at specific locations, parties may not evade that limitation by ‘deeming’ their activity to occur where it, as a factual matter, does not.”

The panel of D.C. appeals court judges in essence said that neither argument mattered in this instance: “Whether it is otherwise lawful for a patron to place bets from non-tribal land within Florida may be a question for that State’s courts, but it is not the subject of this litigation and not for us to decide.”

“We hold only that the Secretary’s decision not to act on the Compact was consistent with <federal law>,” wrote Wilkins who added, “We express no opinion as to whether the Florida statute ratifying the compact is constitutional” under Florida law.

The balance of arguments raised by the litigants against the legality of the compact was also summarily dismissed as a ‘matter for state courts to decide’.

Source: DeSantis scores big legal win upholding $2.5B gambling deal with Florida tribe, Politico, June 30, 2023

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Viewers Cry ‘Nope’ on Recycled Las Vegas Soap

Some vewers of a viral TikTok video are retching over the possibility that the soap they’ve used in Las Vegas hotel rooms was recycled.

The video, from the channel Science Insider, shows the recycling process engineered by the Clean the World Foundation. The process breaks down used hotel soap bars, disinfects them, and molds new soap bars out of what’s left over.

As shown in a viral Tik-Tok video, bars of old soap slide along a conveyor belt. They are then cleaned, sanitized, and remolded into new bars. (Image: Science Insider/TIk-Tok)

“Hotels throw out millions of bars of used soap every week,” the video’s voiceover states. “But they don’t have to go in the trash.”

The video states that Clean the World cleans dirt and hair from the top layers of used bars. Then a machine called a refiner grates the bars, squeezing out noodle-like strands that get heated and mixed with a solution of water and bleach for 7 to 8 minutes to sanitize them.

Uploaded last month, the video has been viewed more than 23 million times as of Wednesday morning, generating thousands of comments from grossed-out viewers.

“Dirt and hair is removed?” one asked. “I don’t want anything that’s touched someone’s dirt or hair.”

“Don’t worry, all the pubes and dead skin cells act as exfoliating agents in the recycled soap bars!” another comment stated.

“Aaaaand I’m bringing my own soap,” someone else wrote.

It is a safe bet to assume that none of these grossed-out commenters was unaware that Las Vegas recycles and treats every drop of the water discarded from Strip resorts. In other words, at least some of the water drawn from bathroom sinks and restaurant taps was once washed down shower drains or flushed down toilets.

In the viral TIk-Tok video, a refiner grates the cleaned used bars of hotel soap. (Image: Science Insider/Tik-Tok)

The TikTok video claims that “thousands of hotels around the world” participate in the soap recycling program, though it doesn’t name any.

Clean the World’s website lists headquarters in Las Vegas and Orlando. This makes sense since they’re the cities with the most hotel rooms not only in the US but the world.

A 2011 press release posted on the company’s website listed Caesars Entertainment, The Venetian/Palazzo, and Wynn/Encore as Las Vegas partners in its recycling program.

Clean the World did not return an email seeking more information from Casino.org.

Doesn’t Wash

Just because some Las Vegas resorts contribute soap to Clean the World for recycling does not mean that they also distribute the end product to their guests.

A deeper dive into the organization shows it to be an independent nonprofit founded by Shawn Seipler in 2009 to improve the quality of life for vulnerable communities around the world.

Another video about Clean the World’s soap recycling — posted to YouTube by the channel Insider Business  — specifically states that the old soap bars are recycled “into brand new one for people in need.”

People in need are not known to check into Las Vegas Strip resorts.

View the TikTok video below:



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Last of Siegfried & Roy’s Tigers and Lions Leaves Las Vegas for Sanctuaries

The last surviving white tigers and lions belonging to magicians Siegfried & Roy have left Las Vegas. This leaves the Strip without a single exotic cat appearing, performing, or residing there for the first time since 1967.

Siegfried & Roy perform with one of their white tigers on stage at The Mirage during the heyday of both their magic act and of the acceptability of exploiting wild animals for entertainment purposes. (Image: Shutterstock)

The animals were already relocated by The Mirage, where they had been residing — at least in part — at Siegfried & Roy’s Secret Garden for the past 30 years, to two animal sanctuaries. According to a statement released from The Mirage after the fact, WildCat Ridge Sanctuary in Scotts Mills, Ore. and In-Sync Exotics in Wylie, Tex. were chosen after an “extensive search process.”

The Mirage did not state how many cats were relocated or what specific types of cats were relocated to each sanctuary.

“The facilities chosen for the cats’ forever homes demonstrated the ability to continue the same quality of care with thoughtful attentiveness to the well-being of Siegfried & Roy’s animal family as they have received at The Secret Garden,” the press release stated.

Since Strip resorts don’t alert the media to highly controversial events in which things can go wrong, there were no photographs available of the exotic cats leaving The Mirage in Las Vegas. So Casino.org asked Bing’s ChatGPT AI to create one. (Image: Bing ChatGPT)

According to The Mirage, both sanctuaries have “deep experience in providing for the long-term care for exotic cats with their experienced animal care teams and excellent facilities that provide a peaceful home to a wide range of wildcats.”

Now They’ve Disappeared for Real

Siegfried Fischbacher and Roy Horn were the performers to bring white lions and tigers to the Strip in 1967. So it’s fitting that their big cats were the last to go. You won’t find a big-cat show on The Strip anymore, and you aren’t likely to find them in the future.

Whereas big cat shows and zoos were once seen as an acceptable way to educate the kiddos about wildlife and conservation, public attitudes have changed about the benefits of exploiting animals raised in captivity.

The career-ending attack on Roy Horn by his white tiger, Mantacore, during the duo’s magic show in 2003, served as a defining moment for the world to rethink its position.

Horn died from complications of COVID-19 in 2020. Fischbacher died  the following year from pancreatic cancer.

Hard Rock International, the new owner of The Mirage, permanently closed Siegfried & Roy’s Secret Garden last year and announced that all its animals would be rehoused.

The departure of the exotic cats follows the departure of the last three dolphins from the property in May to CoralWorld Ocean Park’s Sea Sanctuary at Water Bay in St. Thomas.

PETA Reacts

After today’s relocation news, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals e-mailed Casino.org the following response.

“Champagne corks are popping at PETA,” said organization spokesperson David Perle. Added Debbie Metzler, the organization’s director of captive animal welfare: “Kind tourists today won’t go anywhere near cruel and archaic animal acts like those from Siegfried & Roy, and these dangerous spectacles have all but done a disappearing act from the Strip.”

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Joey Chestnut Big Favorite for Hot Dog Eating Contest, Little Appetite for Underdogs

Joey Chestnut, 39, is the Tom Brady of competitive eating, and that’s why bettors are heavily backing the 15-time Mustard Yellow Belt winner to down the most hot dogs during tomorrow’s Nathan’s Famous International Hot Dog Eating Contest on New York’s Coney Island.

Joey Chestnut hot dog eating contest
Joey Chestnut chows down his 63rd hot dog during the 2022 Nathan’s Famous International Hot Dog Eating Contest on July 4, 2022. Chestnut is the heavy betting favorite to win his eighth consecutive Independence Day hot dog contest. (Image: Getty)

Chestnut won the 10-minute competition last year after managing to chow down 63 hot dogs and buns. Though a far cry from his world record of 76 dogs and buns that he stuffed his face with during the 2021 event, Chestnut still won last year’s July 4 competitive eating spectacle by 20 hot dogs over his nearest competitor.

Chestnut has won the previous seven Nathan’s hot dog eating competitions, and 15 of the past 16 events. His lone defeat came in 2015 when Matt Stonie beat him 62 to 60 hot dogs.

Little Appetite for Underdogs

Nathan’s has been holding its iconic hot dog eating contest on Coney Island during the July 4 Independence Day holiday since 1979. The format was a 12-minute showdown when Takeru Kobayashi won his six consecutive titles from 2001 through 2006, with 53 dogs being his best performance.

Chestnut won in 2007 and has been top dog of the competitive eating world since. Chestnut isn’t only good at watering down hot dogs and buns but a myriad of other food.

Chestnut holds 55 world records across 55 disciplines, according to Major League Eating, the preeminent organization that conducts competitive eating contests. A few of his notable world records include eating 53 Taco Bell beef soft tacos in 10 minutes, 182 chicken wings in a half hour, and 103 Krystal hamburgers in eight minutes.

Chestnut’s feats have made him an almost sure-bet for tomorrow. Oddsmakers in New Jersey and other states where gaming regulators have signed off on allowing books to take action on the hot dog contest report there’s been little appetite for the underdogs.

As a result, BetMGM in New Jersey has Chestnut at -5000 to devour the most frankfurters. A $100 winning bet on those odds would net just $2.

Geoffrey Esper has the next shortest odds of winning the Nathan’s title at +1200. The same $100 bet would net $1,200 should the underdog pull of what would be one of the more unlikely upsets in recent sports history.

A more popular bet is wagering on how many dogs Chestnut will get down during the 10 minutes. BetMGM has Chestnut’s over/under at 73.5 hot dogs, with the under at -120 and over at -105.

Nutrition Facts

The Nathan’s hot dog contest uses the company’s standard dog, which has 160 calories, 12 grams of fat (five grams of saturated fat), and 480 milligrams of sodium. The bun adds another 130 calories, 1.5 grams of fat, and 180 mg of sodium.

Assuming Chestnut gets 73 or so dogs down, he’ll consume roughly 20,000 calories, more than 1,000 grams of fat, including 450 grams of saturated fat, and more than 50,000 grams of sodium.

The US Department of Health and Human Services and the Food and Drug Administration generally encourages adults to consume about 2,000 calories per day, with some fluctuation based on age, sex, height, weight, and physical activity level.

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