Ca Casino Closing
California’s casinos are already reeling financially from a shutdown that took place between mid-March and mid-May. Cardrooms didn’t reopen outdoors until August. Cardrooms in Los Angeles County are already closed through at least 20 Dec. As part of a strict health order. The Pechanga Resort Casino near Temecula said it will close Monday through the end of March to protect the health and safety of its guests and workers. The San Manuel Casino in Highland also. “Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Las Vegas’ 1,850 employees are being enticed to stay with us in our “Stick Around And Come Back” program.Those employees still with the property when it closes to. Cache Creek Casino Resort announced Sunday evening it’s closing temporarily in response to the coronavirus pandemic. Cache Creek’s announcement marked the first Northern California tribal.
Casino jumped the gun
A California casino was shut down by the governor for violating the state’s lockdown order just a day after it reopened. The Towers Casino in Grass Valley excitedly announced on its Facebook page that it was open on Monday after being closed for two months. Unfortunately for the casino, it was not supposed to do so and it was forced to shutter once again.
Grass Valley is in Nevada County, about 56 miles northeast of Sacramento. Nevada County does have the state government’s approval to speed up phase 2 of Calfornia’s plan to modify the stay-at-home order, but that applies to restaurants, malls, and childcare facilities, not casinos. Casinos come in the next phase.
Thus, the shutdown order from Governor Gavin Newsom on Towers Casino’s second day back in operation.
Trying to stay safe
The casino emphasized that it was taking strict safety precautions to keep customers and staff safe. There is a sign on the door telling patrons to wash their hands before they play. Employees have also been instructed to sanitize chips after they are exchanged at the cashier, sanitize cup holders after every use, and wipe down table rails whenever a person leaves.
Three of the casino’s six poker tables were in use for cash games. As can be seen in the pictures the casino posted on Facebook, players did don face coverings, from surgical-type masks to cloth masks to bandanas. It does not appear that anyone, including the poker dealer, was wearing gloves.
Governor can’t stop all casinos from opening
Governor Newsom has been battling to try to get people and businesses to adhere to California’s COVID-19 pandemic safety rules. As we reported Tuesday, he has been having some trouble with Native American-operated casinos. While the governor does have the authority to force a venue like Towers Casino to stay closed, he does not have that same pull with tribal casinos. Because their casinos are on sovereign land, they are do not fall under state regulatory control.
Most tribal casinos in California are waiting until at least June 1 to reopen, but three have opened or plan to open this week. Viejas Casino & Resort and Sycuan Casino Resort have already welcomed back gamblers and Valley View Casino is set to open back up on Friday.
All Governor Newsom can do is ask them to stay closed. He can’t make them.
“I understand that some tribal governments are planning on reopening casinos on their lands,” Newsom wrote in a letter to the tribes on Friday. “This deeply concerns me, and I urge tribal governments to reconsider and instead make those determinations based on how they align with the current local public health conditions and the statewide stage of reopening.”
“….in the spirit of sovereign-to-sovereign engagement I respectfully request that until a surrounding or neighboring local jurisdiction has legally progressed into Stage 3, your tribal casinos remain closed,” he said.
While it remains to be seen if reopening any casinos, be they tribal or commercial, is a good idea, the three California casinos are at least implementing safety policies and are not running at full capacity.
The Havasu Landing Resort & Casino has closed again due to COVID-19. The coronavirus “has reached the Chemehuevi Indian Reservation,” according to a press release on the casino’s website. The casino will close its doors for a minimum of 14 days.
“In this case, it has also affected two departments that are mandatory to the operation of any casino,” the release continues. “Without these two departments we cannot legally open and operate a gaming facility.”
As a tribal casino, the Havasu is not required by the state to close at this time. Although California Gov.Gavin Newsomordered cardrooms to close last week, tribal casinos have sovereign rights over operations on their lands. However, the California Gaming Association(CGA) is urging Newsom to take action.
The biggest tribal casinos are staying open
PlayCA reached out to the five biggestCalifornia tribal casinos by gaming floor size and offering, which are:
- Pechanga Resort & Casino (Temecula)
- Cache Creek Casino Resort (Brooks)
- San Manuel Indian Bingo & Casino (Highland)
- Thunder Valley Casino (Lincoln)
- Viejas Casino & Turf Club (Alpine)
As of Tuesday, all are open.
Controversy swirls at Thunder Valley
Thunder Valley Casino is still open despite two employees resigning last week, citing a lack of COVID-19 protocols.
“There’s a lack of safety concerns for guests, employees and myself,” Michelle Olsen, who worked at Thunder Valley Casino Resort for 13 years, told ABC 10. “After speaking to my doctor and the health conditions that I have, I decided to make a decision that my health is more important and my family is more important, and I really don’t want to catch this.”
Olsen added that social distancing measures are not being enforced, and not all guests are wearing masks inside of the casino.
An anonymous employee offered similar concerns.
“They gave us one mask — a cloth one they made — and that was on June 5, and I’ve had the same one ever since,” the employee said. “I haven’t received another one, and I have to take it home and wash it everyday. And, in fact, the first couple weeks we opened, I worked 19 out of 21 days.”
Thunder Valley is still open as of now, but for how long? That may depend on whether or not the CGA gets its way.
CGA wants tribal casinos closed
The CGA recently sent a letter to Newsom asking him to order all casinos — including tribal — to temporarily close as California COVID-19 cases surge.
That begs the question, does Newsom have the authority to do so? It’s complicated. Normally, the answer would be no. But in the letter, the CGA notes a part of the tribal compact that says:
“The Tribe shall not conduct Class III Gaming in a manner that endangers the public health, safety, or welfare, provided, however, that nothing herein shall be construed to make applicable to the Tribe any state laws or regulations governing the use of tobacco.”
Kyle Kirkland, president of the CGA, believes Newsom is able to do so based on the circumstances.
Ca Casino Shut Down
“This is a contract, right? This is an agreement between the state and the tribes to offer gaming within our state,” Kirkland said. “So the deal is you need to adhere to the contract, and if the governor feels like there’s a real health and safety risk, we need [to] pull this back. My read of it, is that he can do it.”
Ca Casino Closing
California COVID-19 outlook
It’s… not great.
California reported 8,358 new cases on July 13 to bring the state’s total to 329,162 positive cases. On June 13, the state reported 3,149 new cases.
Deaths are also on the rise, with a rolling seven-day average of 91 fatalities. A month ago, the rolling seven-day average was 62.
List Of Tunica Casino Closings
It looks like a battle may be coming between the CGA, the state government and tribal casinos as California continues to roll back its reopening. We’ll keep you updated with the latest.