In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, Ohio casinos generated record revenue.

1. Michigan Casino News
2. When Is Ohio Casinos Reopening
3. Illinois Casino News
4. Toledo Ohio Casino News
5. Ohio Opening Casinos

1. Ohio casinos and racinos will comply with Gov. Mike DeWine’s order on mass gatherings during the coronavirus outbreak, state officials announced Friday night.The casinos and racinos.
2. The casinos notched an all-time revenue high of $86 million in July, when they reopened following Ohio’s discontinued stay-at-home order during the early part of the viral pandemic.
3. Governor DeWine announced Ohio's casinos and racinos are permitted to reopen on June 19, provided they follow protocols for the health and safety of employees and guests.

Michigan Casino News

According to numbers released by the Ohio Casino Control Commission, the state’s four casinos totaled $86 million in gross gaming revenue. It is the highest-grossing GGR since all four casinos opened for business in 2013.

The previous all-time-high was in March 2013, the same month that the state’s most recent casino in Cincinnati was opened, when casinos won $84.3 million from gamblers. The state also has seven racinos that were not included in these figures.

Ohio’s gaming market returned in mid-June after Gov. Mike DeWine ordered casinos and racinos to close in mid-March due to the COVID-19 outbreak in the country. July was the first full month that casinos were open for business.

Mike DeWine's office says its ban on public gatherings to protect the public for the outbreak of the new coronavirus doesn't include an exemption for casinos.

Hollywood Toledo dragged in the lion’s share of the revenue, reporting a win of $33.3 million. It’s the most money won by an Ohio casino in a single month in the history of the state’s gaming market.

Jessica Franks, a spokeswoman for the Ohio Casino Control Commission, told the Hamilton Journal-News that she believed Toledo’s numbers were slightly inflated by the likely influx of Detroit gamblers, who up until last week had their home casinos closed.

Regardless of the reasons why, the successful month by Ohio gaming operators could be a microcosm of a budding trend. In a post-coronavirus gambling world, markets that are less reliant on tourism and more reliant on local gamblers will be better off.

Last week, three casinos in Maryland announced an increase in revenue, and the state’s entire GGR was only down 6.3 percent year-over-year. Iowa’s gaming regulators also reported just a four percent drop in July, while operating at reduced capacities.

This is compared with much larger markets like Las Vegas and Macau, which have consistently reported large year-over-year losses since reopening. Macau reported its fourth straight month with a greater than 90 percent revenue drop in August, while the Las Vegas Strip posted a 61 percent decline in June, the most recent month with data.

Despite opening its casinos June 4 with the rest of Nevada, Las Vegas tourism is down more than 70 percent year-over-year, according to numbers compiled by the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority Research Center. Macau saw similar drops in tourism due to travel restrictions imposed by the government.

New Jersey will release its first revenue report since Gov. Phil Murphy allowed the reopening of the nine Atlantic City casinos in early July later this week.

Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine's office says its ban on public gatherings to protect the public for the outbreak of the new coronavirus doesn't include an exemption for casinos.

This contradicts reassurances by Jack Casino Cincinnati that it will remain open for business for the time being.

Earlier Thursday, DeWine's office announced a ban on 'public gatherings' of more than 100 people until a current state of emergency is rescinded or modified.

The order bans events that bring 'together 100 or more persons in a single room or single space at the same time such as an auditorium, stadium, arena, large conference room, meeting hall, theater, or any other confined indoor or outdoor space.' DeWine's office said it specifically includes parades, fairs, and festivals.

Exempted are: 'normal operations of airports, bus and train stations, medical facilities, libraries, shopping malls and centers, or other spaces where 100 or more persons may be in transit.'

Also exempted are: 'typical office environments, schools, restaurants, factories, or retail/grocery stores where large numbers of people are present, but it is unusual for them to be within arm’s length of one another.'

But casinos, including regular gambling floor operations, are not exempted, said Dan Tierney, a spokesman for the governor.

'The order does not exclude casinos,' Tierney told The Enquirer. He added the casino industry has requested 'clarity' on the order, but so far DeWine's office hasn't signed off on waiving the ban for gambling destinations.

When Is Ohio Casinos Reopening

This contradicted the impression left by officials with Jack Casino (which is planning to change its name to Hard Rock Cincinnati following an acquisition of the property by the Florida-based gambling company), which indicated they were remaining open for business.

'Our highest priority is always the health and safety of our team members and guests,' casino officials said in a statement.

Casino officials said they had stepped up regular cleaning throughout the casino to keep customers and employees healthy. They were also making hand sanitizer readily available for all.

'We support the Governor’s leadership and are following the Executive Order set forth by the Director of the Ohio Department of Health (ODH) and its definition of 'mass gatherings,'” the casino said, adding they interpreted the order to ban special events as gatherings. But the casino stated it believed 'normal operations' were exempted.

Tierney said 'No.' DeWine's office indicated local law enforcement could shut the place down if they deemed it in violation of the gathering ban.

Illinois Casino News

Casino officials said late Thursday night they believed they were in compliance with the order, though it doesn't include casinos as being specifically exempted. They said they would comply with any orders by DeWine's office.

'We feel our building is no different than a retail shopping mall as per the language used to clarify mass gatherings outlined in the executive order,' a casino spokeswoman said.

Toledo Ohio Casino News

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Ohio Opening Casinos

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Coronavirus: Ohio casino stays open; DeWine's office says 'maybe not'