ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. (AP) — Atlantic City tried Prohibition once before. It worked so well that Nucky Johnson, the legendary politician and racketeer, built a Boardwalk empire immortalized on HBO nearly a century later.
It also tried banning smoking, too. That lasted for 20 days as smokers stayed away, sending casino revenue plummeting.
But New Jersey will ban both, again, when Atlantic City's nine casinos reopen after more than three months of coronavirus-related shutdowns.
The late-night announcements from Gov. Phil Murphy landed like a one-two punch on Atlantic City's casino industry, already reeling from lost revenue during the pandemic, and making plans to creak back to life at the state-mandated 25% of normal capacity.
'No booze? No one's coming,' said Bob McDevitt, president of a casino employees union. 'I really don't even think they should open. Why would they?'
Many casinos had planned to reopen Thursday, the first day the state will let them. But that was before they knew they could not let their customers smoke, drink alcohol or anything else, or eat inside the casinos.
Smoking Ban Reinstated Inside Atlantic City Casinos Over COVID-19 Concerns Health Groups Say Research Suggests Secondhand Smoke May Spread Coronavirus September 5, 2020 at 9:37 pm. The first-term Democratic governor is now saying indoor smoking at Atlantic City casinos will remain prohibited. Atlantic City casinos will remain smoke-free on New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy's orders.
The top-performing casino, the Borgata, almost immediately folded what it saw as a losing hand, announcing it was scrapping its reopening plans for the immediate future. Instead, it will wait until conditions are more favorable.
On Tuesday, casino executives huddled in staff meetings, looking for more information and trying to decide whether it made sense to reopen at all.
By mid-afternoon, all except the Borgata announced plans to reopen in the coming days. Resorts, Tropicana, Ocean, Golden Nugget and Hard Rock all said they will reopen Thursday. Harrah's, Caesars and Bally's will reopen Friday.
NJ casinos are restricted to 25% smoking areas on the casino floor. Revel was the only smoke free casino in AC but that changed last year in the hope to bring in more gamblers. The problem is most do not isolate the smoking areas and have smoking in many smaller sections adding up to their 25% limit.
Borgata had no estimate of when it might reopen.
Jim Allen, president of Hard Rock International, said the company and its thousands of workers are eager to reopen and start making up for some of the losses they have experienced since March.
'People are really desperate for a job and a paycheck,' he said.
Murphy said Tuesday casinos will just have to endure a new reality until conditions improve.
'It's not a life sentence,' he said. 'We would like to be full-bore open; we're just not there yet.'
Before the pandemic, Atlantic City had started to regain its groove, reclaiming its former spot at the nation's No. 2 gambling market behind Nevada in terms of annual gambling revenue.
Nevada casinos reopened nearly a month earlier than those in New Jersey, with many of the same health protocols: temperatures checks for guests and workers, mandated masks after being optional for a time, and hand sanitizer stations. Smoking was still allowed.
Within minutes of Murphy's announcements, made in a news release issued shortly before 10 p.m. Monday, social media lit up with complaints.
Some grumbled that the governor had sucked the fun out of the casino experience, even as a smaller number defended the decision on public health grounds. Some said they were scrapping long-planned trips, and others said they would take their business to Pennsylvania casinos.
Some vowed to come anyway, mixing drinks in their rooms and bringing sandwiches for dinner.
States With Smoke Free Casinos
The bans will also reduce the number of laid-off workers who will return. Drink servers and indoor restaurant workers were to comprise a significant portion of the force that had been envisioned.
McDevitt said 60% of his union members had been scheduled to return to work this week. Now, as few as 30% may go back.
Casinos can offer outdoor dining, and those with beach bars, outdoor decks or Boardwalk seating still plan to offer it. And alcohol will still be sold in liquor stores and non-casino businesses. But the last thing casinos want is their patrons leaving the premises, for any reason.
Murphy said he reversed course on indoor dining because of the continuing outbreaks in parts of the country, even though New Jersey has seen a significant reduction in the number of its virus cases.
A significant portion of Atlantic City's casino customers comes from New York, which leads the nation in total virus cases. Murphy also said crowds at popular spots at the Jersey Shore and elsewhere have not been following social distancing rules or wearing masks.
That angered many in the casino industry.
'This is like Catholic school: A handful of people misbehaves, and the entire class gets punished,' McDevitt said.
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Follow Wayne Parry at http://twitter.com/WayneParryAC.
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Follow AP coverage of the pandemic at https://apnews.com/VirusOutbreak and https://apnews.com/UnderstandingtheOutbreak.
ANR Foundation applauds Governor Phil Murphy and the State of New Jersey for taking the important step to reopen Atlantic City casinos 100% smokefree indoors for the health and safety of workers and the general public.
With this action, New Jersey joins other states in its regional gaming market, including Maryland, New York, and Delaware, that already have successful smokefree casinos. Requiring business to be smokefree is a vital step for reopening safely.
Many of Atlantic City's competitors are already smokefree indoors
Within minutes of Murphy's announcements, made in a news release issued shortly before 10 p.m. Monday, social media lit up with complaints.
Some grumbled that the governor had sucked the fun out of the casino experience, even as a smaller number defended the decision on public health grounds. Some said they were scrapping long-planned trips, and others said they would take their business to Pennsylvania casinos.
Some vowed to come anyway, mixing drinks in their rooms and bringing sandwiches for dinner.
States With Smoke Free Casinos
The bans will also reduce the number of laid-off workers who will return. Drink servers and indoor restaurant workers were to comprise a significant portion of the force that had been envisioned.
McDevitt said 60% of his union members had been scheduled to return to work this week. Now, as few as 30% may go back.
Casinos can offer outdoor dining, and those with beach bars, outdoor decks or Boardwalk seating still plan to offer it. And alcohol will still be sold in liquor stores and non-casino businesses. But the last thing casinos want is their patrons leaving the premises, for any reason.
Murphy said he reversed course on indoor dining because of the continuing outbreaks in parts of the country, even though New Jersey has seen a significant reduction in the number of its virus cases.
A significant portion of Atlantic City's casino customers comes from New York, which leads the nation in total virus cases. Murphy also said crowds at popular spots at the Jersey Shore and elsewhere have not been following social distancing rules or wearing masks.
That angered many in the casino industry.
'This is like Catholic school: A handful of people misbehaves, and the entire class gets punished,' McDevitt said.
___
Follow Wayne Parry at http://twitter.com/WayneParryAC.
___
Follow AP coverage of the pandemic at https://apnews.com/VirusOutbreak and https://apnews.com/UnderstandingtheOutbreak.
ANR Foundation applauds Governor Phil Murphy and the State of New Jersey for taking the important step to reopen Atlantic City casinos 100% smokefree indoors for the health and safety of workers and the general public.
With this action, New Jersey joins other states in its regional gaming market, including Maryland, New York, and Delaware, that already have successful smokefree casinos. Requiring business to be smokefree is a vital step for reopening safely.
Many of Atlantic City's competitors are already smokefree indoors
Today there are nearly 1,000 smokefree U.S. casinos and gambling venues as a result of the leadership of many cities, states, and sovereign Tribes. With the smokefree reopening guidelines in New Jersey and Michigan, 22 states now require smokefree air inside all commercial gaming venues.
Harrah's Atlantic City Smoking Policy
More than 100 casinos have adopted new smokefree indoor air policies as part of their reopening plans. Most recently, Seneca Resorts and Casinos in New York, Mohegan Sun Casino and Resort in Connecticut, and Twin River Casino in Rhode Island announced plans to reopen smokefree.
Some in the gaming industry have criticized New Jersey's smokefree reopening guidelines, borrowing from Big Tobacco's playbook and making anecdotal predictions of economic harm.
When Atlantic City previously went smokefree for 30 days in 2008, casino workers finally had the right to breathe safe air in their job. However, the ordinance was rescinded under intensive industry lobbying pressure. Despite the reversal of the law, gaming revenue kept spiraling down instead of resurging because current gambling trends were already on the decline due to competition from new (or expanded) gaming in Pennsylvania and other traditional 'feeder markets' for Atlantic City. People in D.C or Philadelphia didn't need to drive to Atlantic City anymore for a casino.
Atlantic City gaming revenues losses were never about indoor smoking rules: it was because of new casinos opening in nearby states such as Maryland, Pennsylvania, and New York. Also, the 2008 economic recession meant a significant reduction in discretionary spending for casino patrons. Gaming revenue at that time was down across all markets regardless of indoor smoking status.
Secondhand Smoke and COVID-19
In the era of COVID, indoor smoking is an urgent respiratory health hazard that can be easily addressed by shifting smoking to outdoor areas and away from staff.
Secondhand smoke is a risk factor for susceptibility to more severe COVID-19 symptoms because of the demonstrative impact it has on underlying health conditions including heart disease, diminished lung function, and associated risk of respiratory illnesses. In a casino, pulling down masks to blow smoke and respiratory droplets creates even more of a health gamble in the context of COVID-19.
Notably, casino ventilation systems do not address the health hazards of secondhand smoke.
A lot has changed on the issue of indoor smoking for the gaming industry since early partnership with Big Tobacco via schemes such as the Philip Morris Options Project that sought to undermine smokefree casino policies. Today, 90% of Gen-Z and Millennials and 92% of older Americans age 65+ are nonsmokers. Most casino staff and customers are nonsmokers. Smokefree environments help attract more nonsmokers and support the growth of non-gaming amenities. It also bolsters HR and operations measures, such as improved employee retention, reduced absenteeism, and reduced cleaning costs related to servicing indoor ashtrays and/or smoke filters. In this current environment, smokefree indoor air shows that the health and safety of staff and guests is a priority.
After the 1918 flu epidemic, public spittoons disappeared from hospitality venues. With COVID-19, it's time to finally end indoor smoking in hospitality gaming workplaces too.
For more information, visit https://smokefreecasinos.org/reopening-casinos-smokefree-the-new-normal/
