Atlantic City casinos greenlighted to reopen July 2 at 25% capacity

Atlantic City's nine casinos will be able to reopen July 2 at 25% capacity and everyone inside the building wearing masks, New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy said Monday.

The governor also said in a Twitter post that racetracks can resume operating July 2 as well, and indoor dining can resume on that date, with restaurants also operating at 25% capacity. 

Murphy said New Jersey casino patrons will have to abide by a requirement that is not being used at every casino that has reopened thus far: all guests and employees will have to wear face masks and undergo some level of health screening. “If any visitor refuses to comply with these simple safeguards, you will be escorted out of the casino,” the governor said. “We are not going to tolerate any knuckleheads trying to ruin it for those who want to enjoy themselves responsibly and those who need to get back to work, especially if those knuckleheads could be spreading Covid.”

“It’s exciting news. This is the first step to getting our economy back open,” said Mayor Marty Small Sr., as reported by The Press of Atlantic City. “Hopefully, we’ll see droves and droves of people here, in a safe way, on the Fourth of July weekend.”

Casinos will be permitted to open on July 2nd at 25% capacity.
 
If any visitor refuses to comply with our simple safeguards, they'll be escorted out.
 
We’re not going to tolerate any knuckleheads trying to ruin it for those who wish to enjoy themselves responsibly.

— Governor Phil Murphy (@GovMurphy) June 22, 2020

“We're delighted to get the reopening date,” said Joe Lupo, president of the Hard Rock casino, the Associated Press reports. “We thank the governor that we'll be able to be open for the July 4th weekend to meet the demand on the world-famous Atlantic City Boardwalk.”

The governor said additional safety and health guidelines will be released in the coming days for casinos and restaurants. Many of the casinos have been planning on their own for a reopening, and have adopted measures including increased hand sanitizers and social distancing to help curb the spread of the coronavirus. 

For example, Hard Rock was the first to say it would require masks to be worn by all employees and guests. Other casinos had planned to recommend mask use for guests, but now will have to require them. Lupo said he is confident that what Hard Rock was planning on its own will meet, and probably exceed, whatever standards the state imposes.

“Our air filtration is better than most hospitals,” he said. He also said the casino's player database will be able to assist health authorities with any contact tracing that may become necessary. “With 85% of our customers being rated, we can provide details on when the played, for how long, which beverage servers were in the vicinity, which room they stayed in, where they ate,” he said.

Resorts Casinos plans to utilize air ionization, and ultraviolet light as part of its sterilization protocols, and every other slot machine will be disabled to keep guests separated.

Atlantic City's casinos have been shut since March 16, and revenue has plunged since then. The casinos had been informally planning to be open in time for the July 4 weekend, a goal Murphy had said he wanted to meet several weeks ago. The holiday is one of the busiest times of the year for Atlantic City casinos.

The official reopening date provides the casinos with a little more than 10 days to rehire staff and train them on updated health and safety protocols. The time frame is in line with what casino industry executives have said they need to rehire and train employees, as well as ensure the properties can effectively operate under the new guidelines.

With reduced guest capacity, fewer employees will be needed at each casino. More than 26,000 people have been out of work since mid-March due to the casino closures and many have been unable to collect unemployment benefits because of the state’s overloaded system, according to The Press of Atlantic City.

Bob McDevitt, president of Unite Here Local 54, the casino workers union that represents more than 10,000 hospitality and hotel employees in Atlantic City, said enforcement of the health and safety protocols was of “great importance,” and lauded Murphy’s commitment to them.