According to a spokesperson for Gateway Casinos & Entertainment, the company is not worried about Ontario’s latest set of health and safety protocols. Director of Communications Rob Mitchell explained that the company’s gaming properties in the province such as Starlight Casino Point Edward will not be directly impacted by the new limit on patrons’ restriction.
During the week, the provincial government of Ontario announced its newest health and safety protocols, as a way of countering the rising cases of the unprecedented situation. Now, there is a 50% volume limit on the province’s indoor venues for entertainment with a capacity of 1,000 or more. Businesses that will work at half capacity include sports facilities, entertainments centres, and casinos.
Work Continues
In an interview Mr. Mitchell said that the company’s casino properties in Ontario such as Starlight Casino Point Edward, Cascades Casino Chatham, and Gateway Casinos – Sarnia will not feel the impact of the new provincial orders. The representative said that the company will not be affected from a regulatory standpoint at the aforementioned casinos and that they should be okay.
The spokesperson explained that during these conditions the Point Edward facility usually hosts 1,000 visitors at a given time, out of it 2,000 total guest capacity. He added that the Sarnia property has a maximum occupancy of approximately 600 individuals and the Chatham one has a maximum volume of around 1,000 patrons at a time.
Also, Mr. Mitchell shared that the company noticed some drop in visitors once the vaccine passports were introduced. He said that initially there was some confusion on what worked on what did not, but now patrons have become accustomed to it. The representative also said that the company is cautiously optimistic about moving forward in the ever-changing scenery, and he believes that customers feel safe and protected at the company’s facilities.
After Ontario announced the new capacity protocols, Premier Doug Ford emphasized that locals do not wear masks as much as organizers implore them to mask. However, Mr. Mitchell assured that this has not been the case at the conglomerate’s properties, and he said that there have been very few incidents of patrons refusing to mask.
Opening Date Coming Soon
Recently, Gateway Casinos & Entertainment provided an update on its Cascades Casino North Bay project in Ontario. The company shared that work at the site is going to plan, and it applies finishing touches to the property. Also, it is hosting an online job fair to hire 200 staff members for the casino which is on schedule to have its grand opening in early 2022.
KED Involvement
Currently, the gaming conglomerate is set to launch one more gaming property in Ontario as the company is part of the Kingsway Entertainment District project in Sudbury. However, the project is facing a legal challenge by a local non-profit group, and the gaming leader has requested for the construction of the project to stop while there is a legal battle against it. The company assured that remains committed to the site.
Source: Gowdy, Colin “New capacity limits not expected to impact area casinos: spokesperson”, SarniaNewsToday, December 20, 2021
