NY governor pushes for legal gambling
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo is urging the legislature and voters to legalize table dealer gambling like blackjack and poker to boost tax revenue and create jobs.
Jan. 4 The Associated Press
washingtonpost
Friday, January 6, 2012
First slot machines arrive at soon-to-open Revel casino in Atlantic City
First slots arrive at Revel, new AC casino
First slot machines arrive at soon-to-open Revel casino in Atlantic City
By Wayne Parry, Associated Press | AP
1/05/2012
ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. (AP) -- For years, it was an empty colossus of glass and steel. Now, Revel is really becoming a casino: its first slot machines arrived Wednesday.
The first shipment of 323 machines arrived at the $2.4 billion casino that's being counted on to help revive the sagging fortunes of the nation's second-largest gambling market. Workers in hardhats used hand trucks to wheel the machines from the back of tractor trailers into the still-unfinished building, and into service elevators that brought them either to the casino floor or to storage areas.
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"It's exciting," said George Mancuso, Revel's vice president of slot operations. "It's a real big step for everybody involved."
The casino is still scheduled to open May 15, though the opening could be moved up somewhat. Mancuso said the project remains on schedule.
Revel will get deliveries of 200 to 300 new machines a day, and should have all 2,400 by Jan. 20, he added.
The machines arriving on the first day were all unbranded. They can be labeled and programmed as needed in a variety of themes. Mancuso said Revel will have "all the classic machines that people are accustomed to, as well as some new ones."
Classic titles that will be used at Revel include the Diamond series; Red, White and Blue; Wheel Of Fortune; American Idol; Sex And The City; The Wizard of Oz and others. About 20 percent of Revel's slot machines will be progressives, which link numerous machines to compete for a common, larger jackpot.
Mancuso also said Revel will open with 100 server-based games, which are connected to a computer database that enables the casino to quickly change the theme of the game to meet demand. It will be the first casino in Atlantic City to offer such machines.
"If a customer wants to play a particular brand, we will be able to change that game in a matter of minutes on the floor," Mancuso said. "It gives us a big advantage."
Slot machine technology has advanced greatly over the past decade, he said.
"Years ago it was all spinning reels," said Mancuso, who got his first job in the industry as a slot technician at Resorts in 1979, a year after New Jersey's first casino opened. "Now it's a lot more video, second-screen features. It's more of an entertainment experience."
Machines will accept bets ranging from a penny to $100 per play.
Revel will have 1,900 hotel rooms and employ about 5,500 people when it opens its doors at the north end of the Boardwalk. It will become the city's 12th casino, and the first to open since the Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa in 2003.
A line of workers snakes its way through the unfinished Revel casino in Atlantic City N.J. on Jan. 4, 2012. The workers were waiting to unload the first 323 slot machines to arrive at the casino, which is due to open in May.
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