“We didn’t plan to open until March. So this is, literally, found money. We didn’t even budget for it. Wait and see what happens when we get this engine fully running.” That was the excuse 
made by a Resorts World Catskills executive for the anemic opening grosses at the $1.2 billion would-be megaresort. Resorts World wasn’t even performing as well out of the gate as (less-expensive) Tioga Downs and Del Lago. The Genting Group property was pinning its hopes on still-to-come high-roller amenities including a golf course that opens in 2019.
Flash forward to July and Resorts World Catskills has become a ticking time bomb on Genting’s balance sheet. Moody’s Investors Service downgraded its debt to “in poor standing.” Resorts World is carrying $535 million in debt and so far its grosses have been half of what Genting projected. The company predicted $277 million in Year One and its happy-talk consultants forecast $300 million. The sobering reality has Resorts World on pace for $143 million its first year. It’s pulling in a weak $12 million/month. We don’t have the cash-flow numbers but for return on investment that looks pretty catastrophic.
It gets worse. A financial analysis showed Resorts World needing $228-$246 win/slot/day just to stay healthy and $1,517-$1,777 win/table/day. The reality is an average of $1,153 at the tables 
and a disastrous $101 win/slot/day. CEO Ryan Eller “said it’s premature to judge the $920 million, 1.6-million-square-foot casino and … after barely five months. He pointed out that it opened a month early, during a brutal winter, without all its hotel rooms, gaming, and other attractions, and he said it needs time for an extensive, multi-pronged promotional campaign to play out.” Hmmmmm. Shouldn’t Genting thought of that before pulling the trigger on a soft opening, the crack cocaine that casino executives can’t resist?
Among those backpedaling is Jeff Gural, owner of Tioga Downs, who now says he wouldn’t have opened if he’d known he’d get 25% less business than expected. Meanwhile, Genting has found a shill in New York Gaming Commission spokesman Brad Maione, who said unemployment in Sullivan County has fallen to 4% and Genting has injected 1,500 jobs into the marketplace. Empire Resorts is looking to benefit from sports, whenever New York gets around to legalizing it, and from a $30 million subsidy from its corporate parent. (Genting apologists always point to mogul K.T. Lim‘s wealth, as though it were a magical elixir that can cure all problems.) “We have an outstanding equity sponsor that gives us access to capital that most of our New York state competitors in a similar situation don’t have access to. That’s a mark of our strength,” Eller bragged.
“Everyone needs to relax and take a chill pill,” soothed Sullivan County Partnership for Economic Development CEO Marc Baez. “They haven’t lured the Asian market yet. And they need time for their promotions and advertising to take effect.” Maybe so but there’s only so much lipstick you can put on this pig.
On a happier note, Genting has gotten serious about Resorts World Las Vegas, the construction project that time almost 
forgot. VitalVegas.com‘s Scott Roeben reports a rapid ramp-up of construction activity in recent weeks and a Roeben snapshot shows the site looking much more like a hotel in the making, with at least 12 floors having been added. Now that Genting has its eyes on the prize maybe that late-2020 deadline is feasible.
* No surprise as to who landed the first sports-betting license in West Virginia. It’s Hollywood Casino at Charles Town Races. However, operator Penn National Gaming will keep its powder dry for a couple of weeks, launching on Sept. 1. The West Virginia Lottery Commission had hoped for a five-casino launch on that date but other gaming houses are coming along more slowly than Penn with their applications.
* The Fremont Street Experience‘s video displays will become a round-the-clock event once a $32 million revamp is completed. The giant LED screen will also be made seven times as bright, if you can imagine that. And to think that the 
Experience used to be mocked as a civic folly. Instead, it’s turned out to be Downtown‘s biggest tourist draw, giving visitors something to do other than gamble or (for locals) serve jury duty.
According to the Las Vegas Sun, “The canopy will also be incorporating new digital content and interactive elements, such as The Key, an app that will enable visitors to post personalized messages on the screen and vote for the next song or video to be played.” Completion is scheduled to be in time for New Year’s Eve 2019, an auspicious date not to be missed.
