For the Oaklawn in Arkansas, the venue plans on reopening on Monday with guidelines in place as set by the state’s Department of Health. The casino is fully prepared to meet or exceed the recommendations including requiring guests to wear masks. This small fact might cause the casino to lack in business as most people are not complying to the recommendation of wearing face protection.
Plan Submitted to Reopen
Like most casinos across the US, the Oaklawn was required to provide a plan as to how they will reopen in a safe and healthy manner. The casino will have adjusted hours, opening from 9am until 3am on Sunday to Thursday and 9am to 5pm on Friday and Saturday. The facility will offer only one entrance and non-invasive temperature checks will be required for team members and guests.
If anyone has a temperature of 100 degrees or higher, they will not be allowed to enter the facility. Guests will be asked to show their ID so that contract tracing can be completed if required in the future. Team members will have to wear masks all the time.
Slots will be limited at the facility to help with social distancing requirements. Live blackjack tables will have an empty seat between players with no more than three players per table. Craps tables will be limited to three players on each side. Live roulette will not offer services at this time.
Cleaning and Sanitizing
To stay in line with cleaning and sanitizing protocols, the casino has made a few changes. All areas have undergone deep cleaning. The cleaning of public areas will be increased during the day. At night, the casino will be electrostatically disinfected. More hand sanitization stations have been added to offices and public areas.
Signage has been added throughout the property to inform everyone of social distancing requirements along with health and hygiene guidelines. Every team member will be trained on coronavirus safety and sanitation.
The restaurants, the property will offer disposable menus and single use packets of condiments. Extra spacing will be placed between tables. Parties will be limited to 10 people or less. Guests and team members are required to wear masks.
Whether or not the casino will see any visitors remains up in the air. Over the next few days, several casinos will be reopening in various states. It is unclear as to if guests are ready to go outside the home for entertainment. Of course people want to get out and about, but there is still the fear of the coronavirus to deal with.
In several regions of the US, the daily cases continue to increase. Some experts feel that reopening now is a mistake and it will result in even more cases. We shall see in the coming weeks if players are ready to get back to the gaming floor and if such reopenings lead to more issues with the deadly virus.
