Opening day of the long-awaited Aqueduct Racino, located in what was an abandoned section of the great grandstand of Aqueduct Racetrack on the border between Brooklyn and Queens, New York has arrived. Ten years ago the New York State legislature first passed a law to allow the track to add video gaming to its gambling offerings.
Exactly one year ago, with the help of Bradley Tusk of Tusk Strategies, Genting Resorts World New York won the rights to renovate the grandstand and to build and run the racino. In October of 2010 groundbreaking began at Aqueduct. The event was marked with a ceremony in the presence of 700 spectators while then Governor Paterson happily placed the first cornerstone of the project.
Today the “new racino at Aqueduct Race Track,” is finished, with the grand opening scheduled for 1pm on October 28. At the moment New Yorkers will be able to enjoy a “world–class gaming, dining and entertainment experience right in New York City.”
“This project has created more than 1,350 jobs and together we’ve built a truly state-of-the-art entertainment facility for the borough of Queens and beyond,” said Michael Speller, president of Genting’s Resorts World, in a statement. “The grand opening is the result of the vision and hard work of so many different people – both our unbelievably hardworking construction crews that have seen the project through from the beginning and our top-notch permanent staff who have worked tirelessly to ensure we are able to introduce the very best of what Resorts World represents to New York City today.”
Tusk Strategies, with Bradley Tusk at the helm, played a crucial role in helping Genting’s Resorts World secure the contract. Genting will be running the planned 4,500 video lottery terminals at the racino, a significant increase from the 1,600 machines which were in the original plans.
Speller explains what to expect to see at the racino. “2,500 VLTs at the beginning. We’ll have a food court, several venues up and running, the international buffet now will be up and running. The 2,500-bay parking garage will also be finished and that’s a big addition to Stage 1.”
The 1.3 billion dollar project’s completion now is considerably ahead of schedule adds Speller.
“Three hundred million dollars a year for the state and most of that money actually does go to education,” says Speller. The racino should prove to be a boon to the New York State budget at a time when such a boost is desperately needed.
