Casinos in Atlantic City Reported May Revenue Growth, Giving Hope
Atlantic City casinos received a rare and welcome bit of good news as revenue records for May indicate a rise of 1.6% over May of 2007. Only two other months in the past seventeen have not suffered a decline from the previous year, and one of those was February, which profitted by an extra day this year due to a Leap Year calendar.
May also had calendar help to achieve its positive growth, as the month benefitted from an extra weekend this year. Still, the news was met with excitement and nervous hopefulness, as the casino industry tries to endure an evolutionary period of flux.
Between the troublesome economy, slot parlors and racinos in nearby states, and bad publicity such as the Tropicana fiasco, Atlantic City casino management has been forced to rethink marketing and presentation approaches. Much of the casino establishment is undergoing a facelift, and new projects featuring billion-dollar resort casinos are fighting through credit jams to redo the city's image from that of a pensioner's daytrip to a lush destination of resorts and high-roller casinos.
The effect of these changes can be seen in many facets of the May report. Slot play, the historical lifeblood of Atlantic City, declined for the month, down 1.5 %; but this was more than offset by a 9.5% rise in revenue from table games. This may be a sea change for the town, attracting a more affluent level of patron, who is more likely to play blackjack or bacarrat.
Even some of the venues that reported a revenue decline had good reason; Caesars was down 4.7%, by far the biggest drop among the eleven casinos, but the decline was anticpated as the hotel is under renovation, rendering a large number of rooms unusable.
Any sign of light at the end of the tunnel is eagerly welcomed by casino management, but the numbers and their breakdown do indicate a rosier future in Atlantic City.
