Gambling will return to the Garden State in July. Governor Phil Murphy gave Atlantic City the go ahead to reopen as early as July 2 at 25% capacity and everyone must wear masks. The Borgata, the jewel of AC, will wait until after the Fourth of July holiday to reopen on July 6. New Jersey was one of the hardest hit states at the onset of the coronavirus outbreak in the New York City tri-state area.
Put your makeup on, fix your hair up pretty, and meet me tonight in Atlantic City. Wake the neighbors, call the Chicken Man. Atlantic City will be back open for business at the start of July. Gov. Phil Murphy shut down all of NJ's racetracks and casinos, including all of Atlantic City, on March 16. After drastic measures, the NYC tristate area flattened the curve and will start to resume normalcy (whatever that is in the post-pandemic world). While the rest of the country is spiking with coronavirus cases, the outbreak has been contained in New Jersey. Now, it's time to gamble it up.
Tell Rocco, Tony, Paulie, Sully, Frankie Fingers, Big Sal, Little Sal, Vinny the Nose, Vinny the Ear, Vinny the Leg, and Big Vinny that it's time to head down to AC. After all, that's where the sand turns to gold.
Nine of AC's finest gambling establishments got the okay to reopen. Five casinos will jump right away and open on the first possible date... July 2... which is the Thursday before the holiday weekend. The Fourth of July takes place on Saturday, or next weekend.
Atlantic City casinos reopening on July 2 include Tropicana, Golden Nugget, Hard Rock, Ocean Casino, and Resorts. The 106-day shutdown marked the longest period of time gambling was halted in AC since its inception in 1978.
After the holiday weekend rush dies down, the Borgata will finally reopen for business on Monday, July 6.
Bally's, Harrahs, and Caesars have yet to determine when they will reopen their casinos in AC for gambling.
Casinos will reopen, but only at 25% capacity. Casinos will be required to instill social distancing guidelines. There will be multiple sanitary stations throughout the gaming floor. There will also be temperature checks and all gamblers must wear face masks in public. Obviously, all casino workers will be wearing masks and also undergoing multiple safety protocols.
Gamblers are gonna gamble, no matter what the circumstances in Atlantic City. South Jersey gamblers always had a little edge to them anyway. They would not be deterred by an invisible virus. Jesse May wrote about the insane blizzard that ravished Atlantic City in his book, "Shut Up and Deal", where part of the storyline included trapped gamblers with nothing to do except gamble while it was unsafe to venture outside in the blizzard.
Las Vegas casinos opened up at the start of June. The first wave of gamblers did not wear masks and several casino workers fell ill with coronavirus. The Nevada Gaming Commission got irked and NV health officials almost blew a gasket. But now they changed the rule where anyone at table games in Vegas, including poker, must wear a mask.
Los Angeles area card rooms also reopened for the first time since early March and that included Commerce, Hustler, Gardens, and the Bike.
In Jacksonville, one worker fell ill after they reopened. A casino in Oklahoma closed after someone got sick. In Arizona, three casinos shut down after an employee died from COVID-19.
Gambling will return to the Garden State in July. Governor Phil Murphy gave Atlantic City the go ahead to reopen as early as July 2 at 25% capacity and everyone must wear masks. The Borgata, the jewel of AC, will wait until after the Fourth of July holiday to reopen on July 6. New Jersey was one of the hardest hit states at the onset of the coronavirus outbreak in the New York City tri-state area.
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