Residents of the host community voted overwhelmingly to oppose 24/7/365 gambling.
Twin River emerged from bankruptcy with 24/7/365 gambling.
Slots were employed as a pretext to 'save racing.'
After bankruptcy, Twin River no longer offers racing.
Regardless of glorious promises to the host community and surrounding area, eventually any local control that inhibits the cash sucking abilities of Slot Barns becomes unimportant.
Now, seeking the gambling expansion that typifies Slot Barns, Twin River is promoting table games - 'well, we'll just have a few, blabbity, blab....'
Can we see where this is going?
Hotel at Twin River cold be risky, consultant says
A consultant advising Twin River executives on how to raise profits at the Lincoln slot parlor says it would be risky for them to add a hotel or expand resort-style amenities much beyond what already exists there.
“This is a drive-in market,” said Steven Rittvo, chairman of The Innovation Group of Companies. “You’ve got to be careful in a convenience market.”
Over the years, some Rhode Islanders have worried that the gambling facility would grow into a full-fledged casino, with all the attractions –– and land-development issues –– that go with it.
The central thesis of that view is that the Lincoln gambling facility would install table games –– roulette, craps, etc. –– to attract more gamblers, and would build a hotel to house them for days-long gambling binges.
The former Lincoln Downs has evolved from a thoroughbred horse track to a greyhound racing track and now to an all-night gambling hall with 4,751 electronic gambling terminals, an entertainment venue and restaurants.
Few people west of Connecticut’s capital city venture past the Foxwoods and Mohegan Sun casinos to gamble at Twin River. About half of Twin River’s gamblers come from the eastern portion of Massachusetts, bowing out toward Boston.
“Convenience” casinos akin to Twin River draw gamblers mostly from within a short drive of their location, Rittvo noted — up to 75 miles distant. That means most people drive to such casinos, gamble a few hours, maybe grab a bite to eat, and leave. Most of those spend less than half a day at such places.
Even Foxwoods Resort Casino, with 2,241 hotel rooms, is a “drop dead convenience location,” he said, estimating that 85 percent of the 40,000 people who visit the Indian-run casino daily are day trippers of the sort that frequent Twin River.
And that’s why building a hotel at Twin River would be a financial stretch, Rittvo said.
“I would be cautious about doing it,” he said.
Twin River emerged from bankruptcy with 24/7/365 gambling.
Slots were employed as a pretext to 'save racing.'
After bankruptcy, Twin River no longer offers racing.
Regardless of glorious promises to the host community and surrounding area, eventually any local control that inhibits the cash sucking abilities of Slot Barns becomes unimportant.
Now, seeking the gambling expansion that typifies Slot Barns, Twin River is promoting table games - 'well, we'll just have a few, blabbity, blab....'
Can we see where this is going?
Hotel at Twin River cold be risky, consultant says
A consultant advising Twin River executives on how to raise profits at the Lincoln slot parlor says it would be risky for them to add a hotel or expand resort-style amenities much beyond what already exists there.
“This is a drive-in market,” said Steven Rittvo, chairman of The Innovation Group of Companies. “You’ve got to be careful in a convenience market.”
Over the years, some Rhode Islanders have worried that the gambling facility would grow into a full-fledged casino, with all the attractions –– and land-development issues –– that go with it.
The central thesis of that view is that the Lincoln gambling facility would install table games –– roulette, craps, etc. –– to attract more gamblers, and would build a hotel to house them for days-long gambling binges.
The former Lincoln Downs has evolved from a thoroughbred horse track to a greyhound racing track and now to an all-night gambling hall with 4,751 electronic gambling terminals, an entertainment venue and restaurants.
Few people west of Connecticut’s capital city venture past the Foxwoods and Mohegan Sun casinos to gamble at Twin River. About half of Twin River’s gamblers come from the eastern portion of Massachusetts, bowing out toward Boston.
“Convenience” casinos akin to Twin River draw gamblers mostly from within a short drive of their location, Rittvo noted — up to 75 miles distant. That means most people drive to such casinos, gamble a few hours, maybe grab a bite to eat, and leave. Most of those spend less than half a day at such places.
Even Foxwoods Resort Casino, with 2,241 hotel rooms, is a “drop dead convenience location,” he said, estimating that 85 percent of the 40,000 people who visit the Indian-run casino daily are day trippers of the sort that frequent Twin River.
And that’s why building a hotel at Twin River would be a financial stretch, Rittvo said.
“I would be cautious about doing it,” he said.
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