Hit the Jackpot in Queens
By: Hope Wilkos, Writer/Blogger
Photos: New York Times
Friday, November 11th, will be a historic day for New Yorkers. Queens will be transformed into the land of dice and slots, similar to Las Vegas. Tourists and residents alike will be able to jump on the subway and make their way to the new Resorts World Casino where they can gamble and play the slots until 4:00 A.M. Luck will be in the hands of the beholder.
This is New York’s first casino. It is connected to the Aqueduct Racetrack in South Ozone Park, Queens. Once you enter the casino, you will find 5,000 video gambling terminals and electronic table games, craps, a popular Asian dice game known as sic bo, restaurants like the Stage Deli and Chinese dim sum. The parking area will be able to accommodate 6500 spots.
Legislature approved the casino ten years ago and this has finally become a reality. Opinions are mixed as to whether this will really be good for the city or not. It has the possibility to draw larger crowds, create more jobs and bring in more revenue for the city. On the down side, it could lead to gambling addictions and divorce and even more drastically, suicide.
Resorts World is owned by Genting New York, a subsidiary of the largest gambling company in England and Southeast Asia and it is thought that it will generate up to $1.5 million a day for New York State. At this point in time there will be no live dealers, only robotlike mechanical arms to do the dealing. That is subject to change in the future.
Only the first floor will open on Friday. The second floor will open in December and feature RW Prime Steakhouse, Chinese cuisine and diners may make their way to the outdoor terrace to enjoy fresh air. This terrace overlooks a very, very famous track. The winning racehorse, Secretariat, was paraded here right before retirement and Pope John Paul II said mass here in front of 75,000 people.
As you make your way up to another level, you will find Crockfords Casino for the high rollers who will enter through a private entrance and find themselves treated like royalty.
The third floor, to be known as Central Park, is a vast expanse of 130,000 square feet and the perfect setting for any large event such as a wedding reception or reunion.
Workers have been on the job almost non-stop for the last few weeks to make sure that the grand opening goes off without a hitch and everything is in place for the arrival of the big day. Las Vegas is hitting the ‘Big Apple’.
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