Sept. 22 2011

Betting On Growth:
After A Decade Of Wrangling, First Slots Ready For Oct. Open

By DOMENICK RAFTER

The smell of cut sheetrock, the ear-splitting sounds of saws and drills, the banging of a hammer and the beeping of construction equipment in motion all tell a story of progress. Just 11 months after ground was broken at Aqueduct Racetrack for the new Resorts World New York Casino, the first slots machines are lined up on the multicolored carpets as more than 1,000 construction workers mull around them, installing the final finishing touches.

Next month the first casino floor at the site will open; the rest of the property, including restaurants, buffets and event space, will follow in mid-December. By the end of the year, the decade-long wait for a casino at the track will be over.

Meet Resorts World

Resorts World New York President Michael Speller shows off the casino’s eateries.

“We are well down the road toward completing our first phase opening,” Resorts World New York President Michael Speller announced on Tuesday as he led a tour of the facility. “We will be opening by the end of October. We will be completely finished with this project by the middle of December.”

The first phase, which will be the first of the three floors of the property, will feature 2,280 video lottery terminals and 205 electronic table games including Baccarat, Roulette and Craps. The entire casino is New York-themed: the first floor opening next month is modeled after Times Square; the second floor casino floor will be Fifth Avenue-themed; and on the third floor, an event space will be based on Central Park.

The VLTs are already in place on the Times Square floor. The kitchens are installed in the food court, where there will be seven different restaurant choices ranging from ice cream to burgers to dim sum, and decorative light fixtures have been hung at the Aqueduct Buffet. Electrical and ventilation systems are in place. Video screens and a ticker, similar to the one in Times Square, will be installed this week.

Crews clean off betting stations at the electronic Baccarat table.

The six-story parking garage, housing more than 2,500 parking spots, is complete. The casino will be accessible both from the Rockaway Boulevard main entrance and the entrance along North Conduit Avenue. There will be a total of 6,400 parking spaces in both the garage and in the adjacent lots.

In the center of the casino floor, a two-story atrium will house Bar 360, the central bar that will have room for 240 people. At its nucleus, a 28-by-18-foot television, the biggest in Queens according to Speller, will broadcast local sporting events. The portion of the bar on the second floor will be called Liberty Bar.

Also on the second floor opening in December – the Fifth Avenue floor – there will be two signature restaurants: Genting Palace, which will serve Chinese food, and RW Prime, a steak and seafood restaurant. Both eateries will also have outside seating, and the steakhouse’s outside terrace will offer views of Manhattan. Also on the second floor will be Crawfords Club, a private, invitation-only lounge for high-rollers.

Also on the second floor opening in December – the Fifth Avenue floor – there will be two signature restaurants: Genting Palace, which will serve Chinese food, and RW Prime, a steak and seafood restaurant. Both eateries will also have outside seating, and the steakhouse’s outside terrace will offer views of Manhattan. Also on the second floor will be Crawfords Club, a private, invitation-only lounge for high-rollers.

Outside, between the casino and the racetrack, there will be a Festival Commons, a 70,000 square foot space for outside events including concerts and other mass gatherings.

Though the original plan was to open the casino in three stages between Summer 2011 and Spring 2012, Speller said some unexpected surprises, included asbestos and pigeon infestation, caused a delay and ultimately they decided to open in two phases and have the entire casino operational at the end of this year.

“We found additional remediation work that had to be done,” he said. “That was a challenge for us. Our role was not to be daunted by the challenge, but to turn it into an opportunity.”

The weather in the past year, including two blizzards and Hurricane Irene, did not delay the construction process, Speller said.

Construction workers install the electric equipment over the casino floor.

The Jobs Are Coming

In the NYRA clubhouse, an employment center is open and has been bustling with job-seekers for weeks. A steady flow of applications came in and out of the employment center, filling out applications and talking to potential employers. Renderings of Genting uniforms lined the wall in the employment center.

Already, 200 personnel have been hired in management, middle-management, administrative and supervisory positions. By October, that number will go up to 1,350.

“We have had over 35,000 applications for 1,350 jobs,” Speller said. “And it shows the real need for jobs in our environment.”

He added that 70 to 80 percent of those jobs will be given to Queens residents and hiring will occur “shortly.”

Getting There

Next year, an enclosed walkway will open connecting the site to the “A” train subway station. Speller said Resorts World and the MTA have been working on a plan to revamp the Aqueduct Racetrack station, which currently only has one platform and was only utilized during racing season. Speller said Resorts World would foot the bill for the new station.

Also, the Q37 bus, which stops at the corner of 111th Street and Rockaway Boulevard at the edge of the property, will be rerouted into the site to drop people off at a special bus station next to the garage. The Q37 terminates at the Union Turnpike-Kew Gardens subway station in Kew Gardens and also connects to the J and Z trains at Jamaica Avenue and 111th Street in Richmond Hill.

Speller also said he would continue to try to attract passengers waiting for connecting flights at JFK and those spending a night at local hotels around the airport. Many travelers have seven or eight hour layovers at JFK.

Speller also said he would continue to try to attract passengers waiting for connecting flights at JFK and those spending a night at local hotels around the airport. Many travelers have seven or eight hour layovers at JFK.

A High-Rolling Future

Resorts World New York will have no manned table games, just electronic table games, but Albany has begun mulling the possibility of legalizing table games via constitutional amendment. Assembly Speaker Shelly Silver said this week that he would support legalized casino gambling at “resort areas,” but not in the city itself – though Aqueduct would be an exception, he said. Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos also expressed support at amending the constitution to allow it. Gov. Andrew Cuomo said he would support a move.

If the state constitution is amended, it would require a vote by the legislature now and again after the 2012 elections before going to voters in a statewide referendum. A constitutional amendment would allow table games at Resorts World New York, a move Speller said he supports.

“Resorts World New York, as well as the New York Gaming Association, is very supportive of commercial gaming at the existing racetracks,” he said. “We think it’s a great opportunity to create tens of thousands of jobs in existing facilities and this comes at a time when we need these jobs.”

Reach Reporter Domenick Rafter at drafter@queenstribune.com or (718) 357-7400, Ext. 125.